July 9, 2009
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Whole Wheat Fettuccini with Pesto
Grilled chicken
Green Salad
RECIPES
Pesto:
4 cups tightly packed basil leaves
½ cup grated parmesan cheese
4 large garlic cloves
¼ cup butter, softened
¼ cup olive oil
Peel garlic and place in bowl of food processor. Add cheese and pulse until garlic is indiscernible. Add two cups of basil to processor and pulse until there is room to add remaining leaves. Add remaining basil and pulse until finely minced (nearly a paste.) Add butter and olive oil. Blend until smooth paste. Pesto should be a smooth paste that is the consistency of very soft butter but not runny.
***Depending on cheese and the basil you may need to add additional olive oil to achieve the proper consistency.
Fettuccini with Pesto:
Boil pasta until al dente. Drain pasta reserving approximately a cup of pasta water. Toss pasta with pesto and a cup of pine nuts if desired. Use reserved pasta water to thin sauce as necessary. Serve with additional cheese.
***One pound pasta uses one recipe of sauce.
4 cups tightly packed basil leaves
½ cup grated parmesan cheese
4 large garlic cloves
¼ cup butter, softened
¼ cup olive oil
Peel garlic and place in bowl of food processor. Add cheese and pulse until garlic is indiscernible. Add two cups of basil to processor and pulse until there is room to add remaining leaves. Add remaining basil and pulse until finely minced (nearly a paste.) Add butter and olive oil. Blend until smooth paste. Pesto should be a smooth paste that is the consistency of very soft butter but not runny.
***Depending on cheese and the basil you may need to add additional olive oil to achieve the proper consistency.
Fettuccini with Pesto:
Boil pasta until al dente. Drain pasta reserving approximately a cup of pasta water. Toss pasta with pesto and a cup of pine nuts if desired. Use reserved pasta water to thin sauce as necessary. Serve with additional cheese.
***One pound pasta uses one recipe of sauce.
Feel free to be creative with your additions. We added fresh sun gold tomatoes to the fettuccini for a summery flavor.
NOTES FROM "CLASS"
Pesto is great to have on hand. It can be stored in an air tight container in the refrigerator for up to a month. Press plastic wrap into surface of pesto and cover tightly. You can also pour a layer of olive oil over the top of the pesto to stop oxidation, however, I prefer plastic wrap because it doesn’t thin the sauce.
Pesto goes great on just about everything. For a quick homemade appetizer, spread homemade pesto on a wedge of brie. It also makes a nice spread for sandwiches. Thinned down with olive oil to a liquid consistency, it makes a lovely sauce for poached or grilled salmon.
Use your imagination. If you think it sounds good, try it. If it’s crap -- pitch it, but you might just discover something good. It’s pesto, after all.
NOTES FROM "CLASS"
Pesto is great to have on hand. It can be stored in an air tight container in the refrigerator for up to a month. Press plastic wrap into surface of pesto and cover tightly. You can also pour a layer of olive oil over the top of the pesto to stop oxidation, however, I prefer plastic wrap because it doesn’t thin the sauce.
Pesto goes great on just about everything. For a quick homemade appetizer, spread homemade pesto on a wedge of brie. It also makes a nice spread for sandwiches. Thinned down with olive oil to a liquid consistency, it makes a lovely sauce for poached or grilled salmon.
Use your imagination. If you think it sounds good, try it. If it’s crap -- pitch it, but you might just discover something good. It’s pesto, after all.
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