Pesto!

This past weekend I decided to officially give up on my garden and outdoor plants.  I'll move a few of the herbs inside for winter, but went back and forth on the basil plant.  Instead of bringing it in, I thought, why not strip it, see if it lives, and then if it keeps going, bring it in.  I took every green leaf I could get my hands on and made fresh pesto!  Still no frost here, despite the high elevation and the fact that, well, check out the pictures from two posts ago.

Sometimes my food pictures don't look so bad.  Sometimes they look like barf.  You make the call. 

The pesto is really only half of the story in this picture.  Gluten free cheese raviolis?!?!  Sure enough!  For a price, you can get anything your heart desires.  These gluten free raviolis were like $7 for maybe 10 of them.  Seriously.  Dave got enough pasta to last a year with his $7.  Luckily, I have a little pasta squeezer that attaches to my Kitchen Aid.  Unfortunately, I'm not very patient, nor do I have gobs of time on my hands, and trying to get gluten free dough to stay together through a pasta press is not something I'm willing to do on a regular basis.  Dave successfully made me cheese raviolis once using this contraption and it was positively to die for.  I usually use quinoa pasta elbows.  I highly recommend it, it's the only pasta that has the right texture and it is good for you too.  Look for the teal box in your organic section.  Go supergrains!

Before I get to the pesto recipe, speaking of gluten free food, I literally just realized a day ago that there is a P.F. Changs a block from the bus station I've been using for the last 14 months.  P.F. Changs is well known for its fabulous gluten free food, but I've never been to one!  I need to start varying my walking route, who knows what other treasures I'll find!

Pesto Recipe (off the top of my head, but probably ripped off from Bittman, serves 2-3)
Ingredients
2 cups fresh basil leaves
1/2 cup olive oil
2 small cloves garlic (less if you're worried about your breath)
2 Tbsp roasted pine nuts (these are expensive, only buy what you need in the bulk section, then roast in a pan)
Pinch salt
1/2 cup grated parmesan or pecorino romano cheese

Directions
Throw everything in your food processor except the cheese and have at it!  Once it's all blended (you'll have to whip out your rubber spatula and scrape the sides a few times), throw it in a bowl, add the cheese and stir.  Oh, give it a taste, too, and see if it needs more salt.  Toss your gluten free pasta of choice in the pesto and put some extra grated cheese on the table for topping.  Enjoy, but be sure to serve mints for desert!