Pesto Times Two

I know, I know, I promised Easter recipes. But these have pictures!


On Tuesday night, following an intense rehearsal for Beauty and the Beast (I'm Belle), my mom and I were exhausted. So, we turned to absolute comfort food: pesto pasta. I'd been reading my Bon Appetit in the car, and was filled with wonder for tomatoes and all sorts of grilled vegetables. So, along with my Aunt Cindy's delicious fresh pesto (recipe follows), we put some tomatoes under the broiler, sprinkled with olive oil, salt, and pepper. Then we ate them on top of our pasta. It was the best meal I'd had in ages, and there was a little left over for lunch. It was even good cold. I savored it, hunched over a plastic tupperware on a fieldtrip. So much better than my friends' sandwiches. So, that's the first recipe.

As a rule, my dad NEVER watches the Food Network. That is solely my territory. He restricts himself to sports and action movies. And one golf movie. So manly...

So, it was to my utter surprise when, while watching Good Eats last night, he put down his probably riveting Michael Crichton book and started watching Alton make pasta. I raised my eyebrows, but said nothing. Near the end of the episode, as we watched AB toss sundried tomatoes, olives, and nuts into plain pasta, he looked at me and said "That looks good." I shrugged. It looked good to me, too, but it was 9:30 at night and my mom was still slaving over a Julia Child fish recipe that she'd decided to make on the fly. There was no turning back now. (the fish was fantastic, by the way)

But, I looked up recipes for pasta, and finally settled on a Giada recipe. I'd never tried any of her recipes before, and it sounded good. I was wary, though. I'd read reviews of some of her other recipes, and there were often lots of faults with them. However, I asked my distracted mother if I could make pasta for tomorrow's dinner. "Yeah, sure."

It was so good, I forgot to take pictures. But I'll give you the recipe (second one).

Note about the fresh pesto: This is a spicy, garlicky pesto. If you don't like that, cut down on the garlic and pepper.

AUNT CINDY'S FRESH PESTO

2 1/2 T. pine nuts, toasted
3 cloves garlic
1 cup fresh basil leaves
heaping 1/4 tsp. salt
2 twists black pepper
1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup freshly grated Parm. Reggiano
2 T. freshly grated Romano Pecorino
1 1/2 T. butte, softened

Toast pine nuts in a dry skillet over medium heat until lightly browned. In a food processor, mince the garlic. Add pine nuts, basil, salt, pepper and olive oil. Pulse until chunky, scraping down sides once or twice. Add cheeses and butter and pulse a few more times until the desired texture.


PENNE WITH SUN-DRIED TOMATO PESTO

Makes 4 or 5 servings

12 ounces penne pasta
1 (8.5-ounce) jar sun-dried tomatoes packed in olive oil
2 garlic cloves
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 cup (packed) fresh basil leaves
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan

Cook the pasta in a large pot of boiling salted water until tender but still firm to the bite, stirring occasionally, about 8 minutes. Drain, reserving 1 cup of the cooking liquid.

Meanwhile, blend the sun-dried tomatoes and their oil, garlic, salt and pepper, to taste, and basil in a food processor and blend until the tomatoes are finely chopped. Transfer the tomato mixture to a large bowl. Stir in the Parmesan.

Add the pasta to the pesto and toss to coat, adding enough reserved cooking liquid to moisten. Season the pasta, to taste, with salt and pepper and serve.