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Saturday, July 16, 2011

Herb Pesto: Capturing Summer's Herbal Bounty

When it comes to cooking, I like to break the rules. Traditional pesto includes basil, olive oil, garlic, lemon juice, pine nuts, parmesan cheese, and salt/pepper to taste. Fresh pesto is divine. It's delicious and full of mouth popping flavor.

One evening, I committed to making pesto for dinner and realized I didn't have enough basil to harvest from in the garden. Inspired by the other herbs in the garden, I began to harvest Greek oregano, thyme, sage, Thai basil, jalapeno peppers (mild), and chives. Into the blender they all went!
I added pine nuts, garlic, fresh lemon juice and olive oil. I left the cheese out since I like it just as much without it.

The blend was harmonious and exciting! I placed a small pool of the pesto directly on a plate and gently nestled seared scallops on the pesto. For the salad, I placed fresh greens with tomatoes from the garden and I took some of the left over pesto and added a tablespoon of red wine vinegar. Whalaa! A complimentary salad dressing was made. This evening meal was joyous and herbhusband still raves about it to friends. Since it brought such happiness to our palette, I wanted to share this idea with you to hopefully bring joy to yours! Bon appétit!

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