RECIPE: PESTO WITH ROASTED VEGETABLES

This is my invention, combining the Light and Tasty Pesto from the American Heart Association cookbook, with a roasted vegetable preparation from a Real Simple dish I made last week. Serves 6.

Pesto Sauce

4 ounces fresh spinach leaves
1/2 cup firmly packed basil leaves (jam as many in there as you can, you want lots!)
1/2 cup firmly packed fresh parsley
1/4 chicken or vegetable stock (I used chicken stock for its almost-non-flavor. Veggie stock sometimes tastes pretty strong. Experiment and see what you like.)
2 tbsp pine nuts, toasted in your oven for a few minutes at 350
1/4 cup grated or shredded good parmesan
1 tbsp olive oil
2 cloves garlic, smashed
Salt and pepper to taste

Roasted Vegetables

1 tbsp olive oil
1/2 tsp. salt
2 sprigs thyme
a few grinds black pepper
veggies of your choice: I'm using red bell peppers, artichoke hearts, red onion, and cremini mushrooms
2 tsp. red wine vinegar

To make the sauce:
Put everything but the salt and pepper in your food processor and whirl until smooth. If the pesto is too thick (which would be surprising), add some more stock or water 1 tbsp at a time.

To roast the veggies:

Place the mushrooms on a rimmed baking sheet and everything else on another rimmed sheet. (You don't want these together because the mushrooms release too much liquid.) Toss each with 1/2 tablespoon oil, 1/4 teaspoon salt, a sprig of thyme, and a few grinds of black pepper. Roast, rotating the sheets once, until tender and a little bit browned, 13 to 15 minutes. Drizzle with the vinegar and toss gently.

Toss sauce and veggies together with hot cooked linguine.

RECIPE: EGGPLANT MARINARA

There's a lot awesome about this recipe, including that its made in your slow cooker, features more shopping than chopping, and has literally no fat (unless you garnish with the optional olives and cheese). It also tastes really light and fresh and yummy.

Serves 6-8

1 medium eggplant, peeled and chopped into 1-2 inch dice

1 medium onion, chopped

28 oz. can diced Italian-style tomatoes (with juice)

6 oz. can tomato paste

4 oz. can sliced mushrooms

2 cloves garlic, minced

1/4 cup dry red wine

1/4 cup water

1 1/2 tsp. dried oregano

1 tsp. salt

1/2 tsp. red pepper flakes

a few grinds of black pepper

2 tbsp. chopped parsley

sliced black olives and parmesan cheese, for garnish if desired

Put everything except the parsley, olives, and cheese in the slow cooker and stir. Cook on low for 7-8 hours or high for about 4 hours. Blend to desired consistency with immersion blender (or remove to a blender, but let it cool a bit first), or leave chunky if you like your sauce that way. I blended to avoid questions about what was in it! Add parsley and taste to correct seasonings. Serve over pasta with black olives and cheese on top.

RECIPE: KALE RED PEPPER PESTO

This is a new recipe, modified from one I found on the very cool blog Eating Rules. I tried it out with pasta for lunch today with my friend Kate. We decided it was a winner.

1/2 cup walnuts, roasted

1 medium red bell pepper, roasted (or 4-5 pieces of jarred roasted red peppers)

3 tbsp olive oil

2-4 large cloves garlic, roasted

4 cups packed green kale (about 1/2 bunch)

Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste.

To roast the garlic: Peel the outermost layers of a large garlic bulb and wash the bulb. Place on a square of tin foil and drizzle with olive oil. Wrap up an droast in a 350 degree oven for about 45 minutes to an hour, or until very soft. Save the rest of the roasted garlic for another recipe, or spread it on bread and eat it up with your dinner! You can skip this step and use fresh garlic, but your pesto will be much more strongly garlic flavored with a bite. Roasting mellows it alot.

To roast the walnuts: Preheat the oven to 375 degrees and spread the nuts evenly in a small pan, like a cake or pie pan. Roast until the nuts look a bit oily and are very aromatic, about 4 minutes. Set aside to cool.

To roast the pepper: Place it directly on top of a high flame on the stove and let it cook for a few minutes. You’ll hear it crackle as the skin begins to char. Use metal kitchen tongs to turn the pepper as each side chars. It should be mostly, but not completely black. Then place the pepper in a ziploc and let steam for at least 5 minutes, or until cool enough to handle. Cut the pepper into a few pieces and remove the white membranes and seeds. Set aside.

Wash, dry, and remove any tough stems from the kale.

In a food processor, make the pesto by blending the kale with the roasted pecans, roasted pepper, and roasted garlic. Once it’s smooth, gradually pour in the olive oil and blend until it’s fully incorporated. Season to taste with salt and freshly ground black pepper.

To serve on pasta I used about 2/3s of this batch of pesto and 1/2 cup warmed chicken stock to toss with my cooked spaghetti. I added diced fresh tomatoes, and red pepper flakes (I find there are few recipes not improved by red pepper!), added more salt and pepper, and served with parmesan. This made about 4 servings. I froze the rest in cubes. I think they'll be a great addition to a soup or sauce for potatoes or cauliflower. Since there is no cheese in this pesto, it is not at all sticky.