EASIEST PESTO SAUCE

Done by blender or food processor.  I knew how much I liked this sauce when I realized I had included it in three of my five cookbooks.  In Carol Guilford’s Main Course Cookbook, I wrote:  “For centuries, Genoese cooks pounded the basil leaves in mortars, slowly incorporating droplets of oil into the herb, but...”  In The Easiest Cookbook, I wrote: “Basil is an herb grown since ancient times; it was cultivated in the gardens of Babylon.

This latest is from The Gourmet’s Recession Cookbook . Yeah, I wish I could change the title, but the recipes are dynamite and I hope you’ll buy it... Only 99 cents.  Come on, gang. 

I wrote: “Fresh basil is the basis of this  sumptuous sauce.  I like it on fusilli (corkscrews/spirals—some say the shape is really a helix) because the sauce sticks to the noodles. 

On sliced tomatoes with a splurge of real buffalo mozzarella, a dollop of pesto is a fresh twist for Salade Caprese, usually drizzled with with olive oil with a few basil leaves, on top. 

Divine on cold poached salmon. To poach/steam the salmon I like to use a collapsible steamer basket in a 4 quart saucepan. With about 2 inches of water below the basket add the salmon and cover the pot. The late great James Beard’s rule --any 1 inch piece of fish no matter how you cook it will be done in 10 minutes.

 Agreeably pungent on a baked potato.

 One cup pesto is enough for 1 pound pasta.  Will keep in the fridge for 10 days.  For new cooks, you are right--the sauce is not cooked or heated!

2 cups fresh basil leaves, packed down

½ cup olive oil

2 large cloves garlic, coarsely chopped

½ cup pine nuts (pignoli)

1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese

1 teaspoon salt.

1.  Wash the basil leaves with cold water.  Pat dry with paper towels.  Discard the stems. 

  2.  Put all the ingredients into a blender or food processor.  Whirl or pulse until well mixed.  Pesto should have the consistency of mayonnaise.  Add a tad more olive oil if it is too thick.  Stir before using, as the sauce darkens with exposure to the air. 

Photos by Carol Guilford

EASIEST CHINESE BEEF WITH PEAS

Photo by Carol Guilford

Tempting ground beef dishes are found in the cuisine of all countries.

Take a look at the Easiest Barbecue Beef recipe. Switch a few ingredients and the dish hops from the United States to China.

10-inch skillet and lid

2 tablespoons sesame oil

1 pound ground beef

1 cup chopped sweet onion

¼ cup soy sauce

   I use organic San-J tamari sauce

¼ cup dry sherry

1 teaspoon peeled chopped fresh ginger

1 cup frozen organic peas

1.      Heat the oil over medium heat until oil is hot. Sauté the chopped onion for 4-5 minutes, stirring frequently

2.      Add the ground beef.  Don’t throw in the entire pound; instead pull off small chunks and add them to the pan. Use low heat and stir with a wooden spoon to get the red out of the meat. Recipes usually say, “brown the meat” but what one wants to do is get the red out. Add the soy sauce, ginger and sherry. Stir. Cover the skillet and simmer 15 minutes.

3.      Stir in the peas, just before serving time. re-cover skillet and simmer 10-15 minutes, or until peas are tender but crisp and beef is steaming hot. 

4 servings. I note in The Diet Book  the dish has 9 grams of carbohydrate and 53 calories per portion.

My recommended diet dinner was cucumber salad and baked custard  for dessert.