I haven't posted anything recently, not because there's nothing going on in my kitchen, but because I've been so darned busy! Between the husband's promotion at work (!!!) and going back to school, I've been busier than a one-armed paper hanger (as the saying goes).
But as I said above, that doesn't mean I've neglected my cooking...just my blog (oops). Anyway, despite being busier than ever before, I'm going to try to catch you up with all my recent cookery. For now, however, I'll leave you with last night's uber-fast dinner:
Whole Wheat Linguini with Homemade Basil-Spinach Pesto
I used Barilla Whole Wheat Linguini and cooked it according to the package directions. Of all the different types of whole wheat pasta I've tried, I think this one is the best (I find many walk a fine line between being beyond chewy and needing to be boiled to mush just so I can chew it).
Anyway, the biggest and most delightful surprise of my night was the pesto; one of a series of things I've thrown together in my food processor recently (I love that little gadget!). Here's how to make your own (and keep in mind that I just wandered the supermarket, grabbing things that looked interesting).
Ingredients:
1 package (about a cup) basil
4 cups baby spinach
1/4 cup toasted pinenuts
1/4 cup toasted walnuts
3-4 cloves chopped garlic (don't stress about chopping it, remember it's going in a food pro.)
1/2 cup parmesan cheese
Olive oil as needed
Directions:
Roughly chop the basil and spinach and dump it in the food processor. Add the garlic and the toasted pine nuts and walnuts, and parmesan cheese. Blend until combined, scraping down the bowl as needed. Once combined and with the lid on and motor running, stream in olive oil until the pesto reaches the desired consistency (I think I used between a 1/2 cup and 3/4 cup of olive oil -- I liked the chunkier texture). Toss room temperature pesto well with pasta and serve with additional parmesan cheese if you like.
*For those of you who are counting, this is the second recipe I made up all by myself! =]
Completely un-related but I have never heard the saying 'busier than a one armed paper hanger'. I do love the Barilla whole wheat pasta - and homemade pesto sounds wonderful. I've missed your blogging!
ReplyDeleteHAHA! -- I promise it's a real saying and not something I made up! As for the blogging, I've missed it too, but gosh I'm tired lately!
ReplyDeleteI've never tried pesto before, so this was a scarier-than-usual experiment, but luckily, I really liked it. I made a bunch a froze it (with a layer of olive oil on top to keep it from turning brown, natch) and left some in the fridge (Giada assures me it keeps "practically forever"). =]