Parsley Pesto

Parsley Pesto and Shrimp

When you hear the word pesto, you probably think basil. We love Basil Pesto here! However, the word roughly translates to “has been crushed.’ So, really you could use many herbs to make pesto. I am going to do just that.

This is Parsley Pesto. Which is made the exact same way as basil pesto except you use parsley! (Read that in my most sarcastic voice.) You also substitute walnuts for the traditional pine nuts. I used Pecorino Romano cheese because it has a sharper taste than does Parmesan. I thought parsley needed something sharper. You can use Parmesan if you want to though.

I put a pot of fettuccine on to boil. In the 12 minutes the pasta was boiling, I pan fried lightly salted shrimp and sweet, cherry tomatoes. Pan frying means that you fry the food without oil. This technique works best in a very hot cast iron pan and helps maintain the moisture in the food you are cooking. If you don’t have a suitable pan, use a sparing amount of olive oil to fry the shrimp. When I flipped the shrimp, I added about ¼ cup Parsley Pesto and ½ cup pasta water to the pan. I stirred everything until the pesto and the pasta water made a light sauce. I served the parsley Pesto Shrimp over the fettuccine and garnished the dish with toasted walnuts and more grated cheese. So very good!

Servings:  1 cup
Time:  10 minutes
Hardware:  Measuring cups and spoons, a food processor or blender, a strainer, a rubber spatula, and an airtight container

 Ingredients:

• 2 packed cups fresh parley
• 4 ounces of the best Pecorino Romano cheese you can afford
• 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 4 ounces of walnuts 
• 3 cloves garlic of garlic
• ½ teaspoon of salt

1.  Wash the parley leaves and set them aside in a strainer to dry.
2. Chunk up the cheese and place it and the in the food processor and pulse a few times until the cheese is the size of small gravel. Scrape the cheese into the container.
3. Place the garlic and the walnuts into the food processor and pulse 3 or four times. Scrape this onto the cheese.
4. Place the parsley and the salt into the food processor and turn on. The parsley will become almost a paste. You may need to stop and scrape the sides.
5. Add everything back into the processor and turn it on. With the processor still running, slowly add the olive oil. Everything should begin to blend.
6. Stop and scrape down the sides the spatula a few times. Taste and adjust the salt.
7. Store in the fridge until ready to use.

 

 

Peach Salsa

Peach Salsa

Peaches are in season right now. There are many wonderful dishes you can make with them. Try my Sunshine Peach Cobbler. It is amazing.

However, my husband and I are trying to eat less sugar and fat and more veggies and fresh fruit. Peach Salsa helps us move toward that goal without being boring (I’m looking at you steamed broccoli.)

This would be delicious on Jerk Chicken, Pan Seared Pork Chops, Island Pulled Pork Tacos or Crispy Chicken Tacos. You could also eat just the salsa with chips. It was really good!

Servings:  Makes 3 cups
Time:  prep: 5-10 minutes; Rest: 2 hours-overnight
Hardware:  Measuring cups and spoons, a cutting board and a large knife, a pot and a bowl to peel the peaches, a wooden spoon, a zester, an airtight container

Ingredients

• 4 large peaches (about 2 cups)
• 1 jalapeño
• 1 tomato (⅓ cup-3 ounces)
• 1 small red onion (⅓ cup-3 ounces)
• ½ a green pepper or 3 baby bells (⅓ cup-3 ounces)
• 2 tablespoons fresh cilantro
• 1 lime
• Salt and pepper

1.   Peel the peaches. Blanch the jalapeño at the same time. To blanch the pepper, cut it in half, discard the seeds and remove the white ribs. Boil the pepper for about 2 minutes and then plunge it into an ice bath.
2.  Dice the peaches. Zest and juice the lime. Dice and seed the tomato. Dice the onion and peppers. Try to cut the fruit and veggies into equal size pieces.
3.  Mix the fruit and veggies with the cilantro, zest and lime juice.
4.  Salt and pepper to taste. Refrigerate overnight. Allow the salsa to return to just below room temperature before serving.

Salsa Verde

Salsa Verde

Salsa Verde means ‘green sauce' in Spanish. It gets the green from tomatillos (toe-MAH-tee-yoz), peppers and cilantro. First, what is a tomatillo? Even though they may look like tomatoes and ‘tomatillo’ means ‘little tomato’ in Spanish, they are not the same thing. Both tomatoes and tomatillos are nightshades, but they are very distantly related. Like third or fourth cousins. A green tomato is really bitter and very watery. Tomatillos are always green, much sweeter and crunchy. They taste like they look, bright and mildly floral. They are sometimes called husk tomatoes because they are covered in a dry brown husk. The fruit is sticky beneath the husk. They are most often used to make Salsa Verde.

Salsa Verde can be raw, boiled or roasted. I roasted the tomatillos and peppers to give my salsa a richer, smokier flavor. You can control the amount of smokiness by controlling the length of time you roast the tomatillos. Less smoke? Less char. More smoke? More char. I boiled the onions and herbs to remove the sharp bite they can have. You can skip this step if you like raw onions. You can also make your salsa spicier by using more peppers. Jalapeños can be substituted for Serranos. 

Now that you have this mouthwatering, bright green sauce, how can you use it? Use it instead of red salsa in any dish. My husband prefers Salsa Verde. He eats it on tacos, as a chip dip, stirs it into the sauce when making Chicken Enchilada Suizas,  and as a condiment on a Tex-Mex Burger.

Servings: About 3 cups of salsa

Hardware:  A cutting board and knives, measuring spoons and cups, a pot, a wooden spoon, a roasting pan or a large cast iron skillet, a blender or a food processor

Time:  Active time 15 minutes; Salsa in about 15 minutes

Ingredients:

• 1 ½ pounds fresh tomatillos
• 2-3 Serrano peppers
• 3 cloves of garlic-unpeeled
• 1 small yellow onion (4-6 ounces)
• 1 cup water
• ¼ cup fresh cilantro
• ½ tablespoon oregano
• ½ teaspoon cumin
• Salt
• Juice of ½ a lime 

Tomatillos

1. Remove the husks from the tomatillos and rinse them under warm running water. They are sticky. Rub them until all the stickiness is gone. Dice the onion. Chop the herbs. Juice half the lime. Set everything aside.
2. Cut the tomatillos in half. Cut the peppers in half long ways. Place the tomatillos and peppers cut side down on the roasting pan/cast iron skillet. Throw in the garlic. Broil the tomatillos on the top rack of the oven until they are slightly charred (5-7 minutes.) Remove from the oven.
3. Bring the onions and herbs to a boil. Boil until them for about 10 minutes.
4. Peel the garlic and snap the tops from the peppers. Place everything in the blender and pulse to desired chunkiness. Taste and adjust the salt.

Sweet Pepper Relish

Sweet Pepper Relish

Sweet Pepper Relish was born of my need to make an Independence Day Recipe. I wish that I had thought of this long ago. This was so good. Even my silent husband, commented on how delicious this was.

You can buy a jar of fire roasted peppers or you can roast your own. I would recommend the latter. Fresh is always best. However, I understand that people are busy and fresh is often more expensive. I ain’t mad at ya’. Even if you do not like spicy, you must add either the jalapeño or the pepper flakes. I love spice so I added both. However, the peppers and sugar make this very sweet. If You do not like spicy, I would recommend just adding the pepper flakes.

Servings: 2 cups

Hardware:  Measuring spoons and cups, cutting board and knives, a large heavy bottomed skillet, a wooden spoon (If you are fire roasting your own peppers a plate and a large plastic container)

Time:  Prep: 15 minutes (add 20 minutes if you are roasting your own peppers), Cook: 30 minutes, Relish in an hour

Ingredients: 

• 8 ounces of fire roasted red bell pepper (start with 2 pounds if you are roasting your own)
• ½ cup water
• 1 small onion (4 ounces)
• 1 jalapeño
• 2 tablespoons sugar
• 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
• A pinch of red pepper flakes.
• Salt to taste

Fire Roasted Red Peppers

1. Roast the pepper if you are doing them yourself.
2. Slice the onion and jalapeño into rings and then cut the rings in half.  You can remove the seeds from the peppers if you want less heat or leave them in if you want more.
3. Heat the pan on medium high.  Add the water, onions and jalapeño and allow them to come to a boil.  Boil for about 15 minutes stirring occasionally. The water should begin to reduce.
4. Cut the red pepper into long thin strips. Add them, the sugar, vinegar and pepper flakes to the onions. Turn the heat down. Simmer the relish until the vegetables are soft and most of the water has been absorbed.  Stir just often enough to keep the food from sticking.
5. Remove from the heat and allow to cool.  Taste and adjust the salt. You can serve this warm or at room temperature. 

I served this with my Red White and Blue Burgers. This is also delicious served over fish, tossed with pasta or Yellow Rice. If you enjoy this, you might try Tomato Chutney.