Dinner To Go? No! Pull out the Pesto!!

Oh how I adore cherish llloooovvveeee pesto!!  It is such an easy and delicious topping on pasta, spread for sandwiches, dip for breads, and more!  On nights when I don’t have much time (not that my meals ever take that long), I cook up some quick pasta, toss it with pesto and throw together a salad to go with it.  A yummy Italian night that requires little effort!

Basil pesto is best made from scratch…as are most foods!  Luckily, making pesto is quick and easy!  Plus, it lasts for a few months in the frig (make sure there is plenty of oil on the top) and about a year in the freezer.  So, start with fresh basil (here’s your chance to try home grown basil if you’ve got a green thumb) and blanch it!  Blanching sets the flavor and color of the fresh basil and helps prevent discoloration in your pesto!  Not everyone will blanch their basil, but in my ‘professional’ opinion, blanched basil creates a more flavorful and colorful pesto.  Don’t over-blanch the basil, just dip into boiling water for about 20-30 seconds, then plunge into ice-cold water.  From here, all you’ve got to do is throw all the pesto ingredients together into your food processor!

As for the ingredients, many cooks disagree on the ingredient list, but that’s the joy of creating your own pesto.  You can really tweak it to your tastes, needs, and your available ingredients.  The basic recipe calls for basil, olive oil (the higher the quality, the better), parmesan cheese (Romano can also be used), pine nuts (though almonds, walnuts, and pecans will work too), and lastly fresh garlic.  You’ll also want to season your pesto to taste with salt and pepper.  Generally, pestos are made to taste so the amount of each ingredient used will be up to you!  Place the blanched basil into your food processor, add the cheese and garlic, then start the processor.  After a few turns, throw in the nuts and mix.  While mixing, add the olive oil to your food processor.  Add enough oil until you have a wet, saucy mixture.  As this point, taste your pesto and add seasoning to your tastes!  Enjoy over some hot pasta and think of all things Italian!

Now that you have a wonderful basil pesto in your frigerator, you can use it to make this wonderful variation of Pesto Pasta!  As most know, my culinary passion is in taking traditional dishes and twisting them into new dishes!

Enter my Pesto Pasta Bake.  Super easy to put together and finished in under half an hour!

Ingredients:

• 2 cups basil pesto
• 1 package pasta (I used Rigatoni)
• 1 lb. ground beef (or pork, turkey, chicken, tofu…whatever makes you happy! I used lean ground beef)
• 6 plum tomatoes, diced (or use the can…if you must cheat)
• 1 cup Parmesan/Romano cheese (you could also use Asiago or Mozzarella cheeses)

Process:

1. Heat 6 cups of water to a boil (do not add salt or oil…this will do nothing for you!); while waiting for the water to boil, dice the tomatoes, make fresh pesto (if need be), get all ingredients ready; pre-heat oven to 350°F (~177°C).
2. Once water is boiling, add pasta (set timer according to package directions); add ground beef to another pan (a wok is best) and brown.
3. Once browned, drain beef and return to pan.  Add pesto and tomatoes to pan and heat together with beef on mid-low heat.
4. By now the pasta should be cooked to al dente, drain pasta and rinse with HOT water; add pasta to beef/pesto mixture in wok.  Stir together until pasta is coated with pesto and mixed with beef and tomatoes.
5. Spoon Pesto Pasta mixture into a casserole dish (an 8″ x 11″ will work perfectly) and set timer for 10 minutes.  Use these ten minutes to clean up your two pots, the strainers, the cutting board, and kitchen tools…you’ll appreciate this cleaning-while-cooking after dinner when all you have to do is rinse the plates and add them to the dishwasher.
6. Grab the plates, set the table, prepare the drinks and get ready to serve!!  Pull out the casserole after ten minutes and the cheese should be melted.  All that’s left is to serve and EAT!!!

This recipe should serve a family of four or a hungry couple.  Add a salad and some bread and herb-infused oil for dipping to create a yummy Italian dinner your family will love!  I hope you all enjoy!!

Ciao!