End of summer treat: basil pesto

Where did summer go? Well, I do know where some of it went - much of it was consumed by a constant routine of doctor's appointments in preparation for the arrival of a new child - now imminently on the horizon. Summer has both gone quickly as I've tried to pack in as much as possible before the new arrival, and in some ways slowly as I've been physically slow and limited. We've stayed close to home on the weekends, enjoyed guests, cooked in and enjoyed just hanging out together.

To make things easier, we signed up for a new food subscription service that brings carefully selected farmer's market produce and thoughtful, simple recipes to your door.  It helped keep my appreciation of fresh produce and interesting artisanal ingredients alive even when the thought of hauling produce back from the farmer's market was impossible or the challenge of exploring a new recipe seemingly insurmountable.  Between that, our garden and the farm markets upstate, we've had direct-from-farm ingredients all summer including a constant supply of fresh eggs and wonderful milk.  I bought a beautiful, light, handmade basket to transport vegetables from our own garden as a special treat and an incentive to stand out in the heat.  Lately the tomatoes and raspberries in particular have been ready for harvest by the boat-load - we've enjoyed picking and trying to eat them as fast as they appear.

This weekend I realized I had almost forgotten the pleasure of harvesting the big, bushy basil that is almost waist-high at this point.  We brought in a basketful of leaves and then enjoyed processing several batches of pesto - some of which I'll freeze so we can enjoy it longer.  Last summer's frozen bounty was destroyed by the days without electricity during the hurricane.  Maybe we'll make a point to consume it faster this year so we don't expose ourselves again to that risk.

Homemade pesto

4 cups firmly packed basil leaves, washed and dried
1/4 cup pine nuts, lightly toasted in a dry skillet until golden brown
1/4-1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese
2 cloves garlic
Juice from 1/2 lemon to maintain bright green color of the basil
Olive oil to taste/desired consistency
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

In a food processor, pulse garlic until minced.  Add basil leaves, a several generous pinches of salt and pepper, and pulse until roughly chopped.  Add pine nuts and pulse ~5 times until nuts are roughly chopped.  Add cheese.  While food processor is running, continuously stream olive oil through the food chute until a homogenous paste is formed.  Process less for a chunkier pesto or more for a finer pesto.  Squeeze lemon juice over pesto and pulse a few times to combine.  Adjust seasonings to taste. 

Pizza for lunch (with spicy chili oil!)

 

Is everyone in as big of a tryptophan coma as I am?  Pfew - that was a lot of turkey - and leftovers.  It was a great holiday (my favorite).  Hope you enjoyed yours too.  I thought I'd provide a little inspiration to move back into the kitchen with something simple, and not about turkey leftovers: homemade pizza.  Have you ever made pizza at home?  The trick is buying the dough - it makes cooking a snap.  Whole foods sells a wonderful refrigerated dough that comes in several varieties including multi-grain.  Unlike the others doughs you find in the market, this one doesn't need to be defrosted - it's fresh and ready to go.  Your local pizza store will probably sell you dough - and if they're nice, they'll even sell you one of their rolled out doughs which will save you even more time.  Top with some roasted garlic, fresh ricotta, a sprinkling of shredded mozzarella, some fresh grated Parmesan,  some fresh shredded basil leaves and tomatoes, season with salt and pepper, and bake at 450 degrees F on a hot pizza stone or the back of a cookie sheet for to minutes until crust is golden and cheese is bubbling.  There are a couple of tricks: 1) once you roll out your dough, allow it to sit for 10 minutes sot that it settles and won't bounce back.  2) Pull it out or press it out with your fingers to stretch it back out if it shrinks back after your initial shaping.  3) Do this on parchment paper so that you just slide it into the oven when you are ready and 4) heat your stone for 30-60 minutes before you are going to use it - this will ensure the crust crisps nicely.

 

And what better to season your pizza than some spicy chili oil?  Heat olive oil (needn't be your best) in a pan with dried chilis, allow to cool, and then pour into sterilized jars.  It will get better the longer you let it sit.  This would make a nice little homemade holiday gift for someone who loves to kick it up a notch. 

Artichoke salad and a shortcut

Eataly just opened in New York to a ton of PR and local excitement.  It is a massive indoor space filled with restaurants and a large, mostly Italian dry goods and gourmet items plus local produce, seafood and a local meat counter.  A foodie's dream come true.  One very interesting feature is a station dedicated to chopping and preparing vegetables to your specifications.  Initially I thought "who would ever be so lazy that they couldn't chop their own vegetables?" But then, I realized that there are some vegetables that are so onerous to prepare that I actually avoid buying them: artichokes!  Would they pare raw artichokes down the the hearts and shave them on a mandoline so I could make a fresh artichoke salad?  I optimistically picked out and weighed a dozen baby artichokes and presented them to the counter.  Sure enough, a short while later I had shaved raw artichokes floating in acidulated water, ready for assembly at home. 

At home, I sliced fennel thinly on a mandoline, tossed the fennel and the artichokes with some baby arugula and fennel fronds and drizzled it with some nice olive oil and red wine vinegar.  An "instant" salad that would have taken me quite some time without the leg up.  I was so excited I forgot to shave the 12-year aged Parmesan I had bought to go on top.  I can only imagine the other things I can concoct with freshly prepared artichokes!  I'm quite sure they didn't see this coming but they were game and I'll be going back.

Eggs "shaken"

I figured it was a good time for something very simple. If you are like me, you are planning, shopping, arranging and preparing for Thanksgiving and don’t need another complicated dish to make (or even think about) this week. Truth be told, I am only responsible for one side dish and two desserts – totally manageable and enjoyable. I’ve made both desserts many times before: blueberry pie and pumpkin pie – so there will be no recipe surprises to contend with. I rather like both recipes, so if there is time to photograph them, I will post one or both after Thanksgiving.

Now, back to the recipe at hand. I was introduced to a very simple, yet clever, little egg dish at a brunch that I have adopted as my own. I’ve only shared the recipe once, and my confidante is a convert as well. It’s called “eggs shaken” – loosely named after the person who concocted it, nothing to do with being shaken, which it’s not. The surprise ingredient, wheat germ, adds textures and a subtly nutty / wheat-y flavor. Try fitting it in between turkey and leftovers; it cooks in a few minutes and cures all holiday food transgressions (well, not really, but wouldn't that be nice?).

Eggs shaken

1 or 2 eggs
1-2 Tablespoons wheat germ
1-2 Tablespoons + freshly grated parmesan cheese
Coarse-ground pepper
Salt
Butter
Tabasco (optional)

Heat a pat of butter and a few drops of Tabasco sauce (if you like a little heat) in a small skillet over medium heat. Making this dish in individually sized portions is best (I use a small (~6 inch) cast iron skillet). Break two eggs into a small bowl and gently pour the eggs into the skillet so as not to break them, and to start the eggs cooking at the same time. Once eggs have begun to set, sprinkle with 1-2 tablespoons wheat germ, and then sprinkle with freshly grated parmesan cheese. Generously dust with coarsely-ground pepper. Salt to taste. Just before eggs are cooked to your liking, turn heat to high for a few seconds so that the eggs sizzle when served (a little drama). Serve in the skillet (on a trivet or tea towel so you don’t burn your table)! Let me know how it goes.