Parsley, Arugula and Ricotta Pesto

Posted in Recipes by Annie T

I love basil pesto, but last week when I needed to make a side dish to bring to a party I decided to try something different. I paged through my America’s Test Kitchen Pasta Revolution cookbook and found a recipe for a tasty-sounding pesto with parsley, arugula, and ricotta cheese. I’ve now made this recipe two times in a week and can officially declare it a winner!

(I used walnuts the 2nd time I made this; use Pine Nuts for a nuttier taste if you have them!)

Creamy Pesto with Ricotta

Like it’s basil-based cousin, this parsley pesto comes together quickly. Just toast the pine nuts and garlic in a hot skillet, then blend with fresh arugula, parsley, grated Parm, salt and olive oil. Then the best part… stir several spoonfuls of ricotta cheese into the pesto until the sauce is creamy and smooth. Combine with a pound of cooked pasta and you’ll have a bright, fresh, flavorful side that you’ll be proud to share with friends and family.

This pesto tastes extra delicious if you eat it while watching the Eagles crush the Steelers. Go Birds!

Parsley, Arugula and Ricotta Pesto
(Serves 4-6; from Pasta Revolution)

You will need…
1/4 cup Pine Nuts, toasted
3 cloves Garlic, toasted
1 cup packed Parsley
1 cup packed Arugula
2 tablespoons grated Parmesan Cheese, plus more for garnish
Salt and Pepper
7 tablespoons Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1/3 cup Whole Milk Ricotta
1 pound Pasta

Directions:
Combine pine nuts, garlic, parsley, arugula, Parmesan, and 3/4 teaspoon salt in a blender. Slowly pour in the olive oil as you blend the mixture for 30-60 seconds. Transfer the pesto to a large bowl and stir in the ricotta until well blended. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Cook the pasta according to package instructions. Before draining the pasta reserve 1/2 cup of the pasta water. Mix several tablespoons of the reserved water into the pesto. Add the pasta and stir well until the pasta is evenly coated with pesto, adding more pasta water if desired. Top with freshly grated Parmesan and enjoy hot or cold.

25Jul2015

Zucchini Pesto Pizza

Posted in Recipes by Annie T

Basil is my favorite thing to grow in the garden. This year I have no fewer than 9 basil plants and every one is 2+ feet tall and thick with large, green, fragrant leaves. What do I do with all of this basil, you ask? Pesto pesto pesto!!! This time of year I make big batches of pesto at least once a week. I use a few tablespoons of the fresh pesto on whatever dish we’re eating that night, then I portion out the rest into a silicone ice cube tray, freeze it, and store the cubes in the freezer in a ziplock bag. These pesto cubes keep for months and definitely are a welcome treat in the dead of winter when dinner needs a kick of flavor.

Fresh pesto is one of the key ingredients in this Zucchini-Pesto Pizza that I made for dinner tonight. I spread a liberal amount of pesto directly on the dough, then added layers of mozzarella cheese and thin zucchini slices that had been tossed in garlic and olive oil. Yum!!

As a side note, I had a major revelation while making tonight’s dinner. I constantly struggle with getting the uncooked pizza off of the peel and onto the stone in the oven, so much so that lately I had resorted to cracking open the oven and placing the raw dough directly on the preheated stone. Then I would arrange the toppings on the dough while it was already cooking in the oven. (That’s the hot, energy-wasteful way to do it, but at least the pizza turned out out nice and round!!)

Tonight, however, I wondered… what if I just temporarily took the hot stone out of the oven and assembled the pizza directly on the stone while OUT of the oven?? It worked perfectly!! This is probably the way that everyone else makes pizza, but for some reason it didn’t occur to me until tonight. Oh well! 😄

Zucchini Pesto Pizza

You will need…
Pizza Stone and Pizza Peel
1 medium Zucchini, sliced into very thin (1/8″) discs
2 tablespoons Extra Virgin Olive Oil
2 cloves Garlic, pressed through a garlic press
Cornmeal or Semolina Flour
1 – 16 oz. ball Raw Pizza Dough
1/2 cup Fresh Basil Pesto
8 oz. Shredded Mozzarella Cheese
Freshly Ground Pepper

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 500°F. Position the rack 6-8 inches from the top of the oven and place the pizza stone on the rack to warm up. Place the zucchini discs in a shallow bowl with the olive oil and garlic, then toss thoroughly to coat.

Sprinkle 4-5 tablespoons of cornmeal on the pizza peel then drop the dough ball onto the cornmeal. Knead and spread the dough ball into a 15-17 inch pizza. Carefully remove the hot pizza stone from the oven and place it on a heat resistant surface. Transfer the dough to the stone and shape it into a nice circle the size of the stone.

Working quickly, spoon and spread the pesto onto the dough. Next, sprinkle half of the shredded cheese over the pesto. Layer the marinated zucchini slices evenly over the pie, leaving a 3/4 inch “margin” for the crust. Finally, sprinkle the remaining cheese over the zucchini and slide the stone back into the hot oven.

Bake the pizza for 8-9 minutes, or until the cheese is bubbly and starting to turn golden brown. Keep an eye on the pizza as it cooks… if your oven heats unevenly (like ours does!) rotate the pie with a few minutes left on the cook time.

Remove the pizza from the oven, top with a few grinds of black pepper, then slice and enjoy!

7Aug2012

Adding Some Pizazz to Weeknight Tortellini

Posted in Recipes by Annie T

Despite what you might think based on all of the semi-complicated recipes on this blog, there are plenty of nights when Matt and I resort to quick and easy dinners like take-out pizza, frozen dinner entrees, and basic pasta. One of our go-to pasta dinners is tortellini with a sprinkle of garlic powder and Parmesan cheese (healthy, I know!), but last week we decided to add a little pizazz to the dish by incorporating a few simple ingredients.

This entire meal only takes about 15 minutes to make… including the time it takes for your tortellini to cook! The asparagus gets added to the pasta water for the last few minutes and, after straining, all of the ingredients are tossed together in the same pot, making this a simple one-pot meal.

Quick and Easy Pesto Tortellini with Asparagus and Tomatoes (makes 3-4 servings)

You will need…
1 lb. Tortellini (we love Drake’s Frozen Cheese Tortellini)
1 bunch Asparagus, cut into 2″ pieces
2 tablespoons Olive Oil
2-3 tablespoons Pesto (I used 2 “Pesto cubes” that I froze in an ice cube tray last week)
1 cup Cherry Tomatoes

Directions:
Bring a large pot of water to a boil and cook the tortellini according to package instructions. When there are 3-4 minutes left on the cook time, add the cut asparagus to the pasta water and allow the pasta to finish cooking. Drain pasta and asparagus and return the empty pot to the stove over medium-low heat. Add the Olive Oil and drop in your pesto “cubes.” Stir constantly as the pesto thaws. (If using fresh pesto you can skip this step.)

I made this pesto last week using basil and garlic from our garden. For easy storage I spooned the pesto into an ice cube tray and made 10 frozen pesto cubes — perfect for use in quick weeknight meals!

Add the hot pasta and asparagus back to the pot and stir to combine with the pesto (if the pesto wasn’t already completely thawed it will be after a few stirs!). Add in the uncooked tomatoes, stir a few more times, and serve!

11Jun2012

Garlic Scape Pesto

Posted in Adventures at Home, Recipes by Annie T

After months of growth my garlic plants finally have scapes that are ready for harvesting. Scapes are the “shoots” that garlic plants send up to flower as the bulb is still developing. Because the bulb is not yet fully formed you are supposed to cut off the scapes so that plant can refocus its energy on the bulb. The scapes themselves are packed with garlicky flavor and can be used in all sorts of recipes. I’ll be posting more scape concoctions as the week goes on but for now I’d like to share this delicious recipe for Scape Pesto.

Oh, and before I post the recipe I have to brag about the rest of today’s garden harvest. In addition to the scapes I also picked a handful of beautiful green beans, a large bunch of basil leaves, and three (yes, three!) strawberries. 🙂

Garlic Scape Pesto (serves 2)

You will need…
2 Garlic Scapes
15-20 Large Basil Leaves
3-4 tablespoons Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1/4 cup Grated Parmesan Cheese
Salt and Pepper to taste

Combine all ingredients in a blender or food processor and chop until well blended. Taste the pesto and add olive oil, salt, pepper, or Parmesan as needed to reach your desired flavor.

What can you do with your fresh Scape Pesto?

Serve it with Caprese Salad – that’s what we did!
Serve it over pasta
Enjoy it with a loaf of crusty rustic bread
Add it to a homemade pizza

15Feb2012

More Pizza: Tomato, Goat Cheese and Pesto Pizza!

Posted in Recipes by Annie T

Tonight I experimented with pizza dough that I picked up at Whole Foods over the weekend. The Whole Foods dough was good but we found it to be much breadier and chewier than Trader Joe’s dough. Next time I make this I’ll probably go back to TJs!

Tomato, Goat Cheese, and Pesto Pizza
(makes two generous individual-sized pizzas)

You will need…
1 package of fresh pizza dough (Trader Joe’s preferred!)
3 cloves of garlic, minced
3 oz. herbed goat cheese
1 small shallot, thinly sliced
15 oz. can of whole peeled tomatoes, drained
Pinch of dried thyme
6 heaping tablespoons of pesto
2 teaspoons (approx.) grated parmesan/romano cheese
salt & pepper to taste
olive oil

Ready to go in the oven

Directions:
Preheat your oven to 425° and allow the pizza dough to sit out at room temperature for at least 20 minutes. In a frying pan, heat up approx. 1 tablespoon of Olive Oil and sauté the minced garlic until just browning. Remove the garlic from the pan with a spoon and place in a small bowl. Add the herbed goat cheese to the minced garlic and mix well.

Add the sliced shallots to the frying pan and sauté until they start to soften. Add the (drained) whole peeled tomatoes and cut them into small pieces (quarters or smaller). Stir to combine then let the tomato mixture simmer at medium heat for 5-8 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the thyme, salt and pepper to the tomato mixture and remove from heat.

Remove the pizza dough from the bag and split it into two balls. If you want, you can lightly dust your hands and/or work surface with flour when working with the dough if you want to but it’s not a necessity. Flatten one of the dough balls between your palms and then start to slowly stretch the dough out by squeezing the outside edges evenly. When you get the dough stretched out the size and shape that you like, place it onto a cookie sheet. Repeat the stretching procedure with the other dough ball.

Scoop two heaping spoonfuls of pesto onto each pizza and spread the pesto out with the back of the spoon. Next, sprinkle some Parmesan cheese (about 1 teaspoon per pizza, or more if you want!) over the pesto topping. Lightly salt and pepper the pizzas. Spoon the tomato mixture onto each pizza and distribute evenly. Spoon (or use your fingers) the goat cheese/garlic mixture evenly onto each pizza.

Cook the pizzas in an oven at 425° for 12-15 minutes. The pizzas are ready when the crust is starting to brown. Enjoy!

9Feb2012

Pizza with Pesto, Fire-Roasted Tomatoes, & Mozzarella

Posted in Recipes by Annie T

Individual-sized pizzas are one of my favorite things to make. I always use Trader Joe’s fresh pizza dough as my base and then I have fun experimenting with different toppings. You can take just about any ingredients that you’d put together on a sandwich or pasta dish and put them on a pizza for a delicious dinner. I’m sure that I’ll end up writing about some of the interesting combinations but for today I’m going to describe how to make a pizza featuring the classic combo of tomato, basil, and mozzarella.

Pizza with Pesto, Fire-Roasted Tomatoes, and Mozzarella
(makes two generous individual-sized pizzas)

You will need…
1 package of Trader Joe’s fresh pizza dough (a bag with a ball of dough in it, not the pre-cooked stuff)
4 heaping tablespoons of pesto
2 teaspoons (approx.) Grated Parmesan/Romano Cheese
15 oz. can of Fire-Roasted Diced Tomatoes, drained (or normal tomatoes if you prefer)
12 Marinaded Mozzarella Balls (also from TJ’s; each ball is approx. 1″ in diameter)
Garlic Powder
Salt & Pepper to Taste

All ready to go into the oven

Directions:
Preheat your oven to 425°. Allow the pizza dough to sit out at room temperature for at least 20 minutes. After it has warmed up, remove the pizza dough from the bag and split it into two balls. If you want, you can lightly dust your hands and/or work surface with flour when working with the dough if you want to but it’s not a necessity. Flatten one of the dough balls between your palms and then start to slowly stretch the dough out by squeezing the outside edges evenly. Wehn you get the dough stretched out the size and shape that you like, place it onto a cookie sheet. My cookie sheet has a non-stick surface so I don’t grease it at all — you may need to lightly grease a pan that doesn’t have a non-stick surface. Repeat the stretching procedure with the other dough ball.

Hurray! The hard part is over and now you get the fun of putting toppings on your pizzas. Scoop two heaping spoonfuls of pesto onto each pizza and spread the pesto out with the back of the spoon. Next, sprinkle some Parmesan cheese (about 1 teaspoon per pizza, or more if you want!) over the pesto topping. Spoon the drained tomatoes onto each pizza and spread them out. Slice up the 12 mozzarella balls and divide evenly between the pizzas. Lightly dust the top of the pizza with garlic powder and add salt and pepper to taste.

Cook the pizzas in an oven at 425° for 12-15 minutes. The pizzas are ready when the cheese has melted and the crust is starting to brown. Enjoy!

6Feb2012

Basil Pesto

Posted in Recipes by Annie T

Last summer Matt and I grew basil in our vegetable garden. We had six plants that completely took over the whole front of the garden and blocked the sunlight to the rest of the garden — this summer the basil will be going in the back! I’m looking forward to planting basil again so that we can make homemade pesto whenever we want. Here’s the recipe that we use (from Matt’s Mom’s recipe box).

Basil Pesto

You will need…
2 1/2 cups Fresh Basil Leaves
1/2 cup Grated Parmesan (or Parmesan/Romano) Cheese
3/4 cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil
3 cloves of Garlic
1/2 cup Roasted Pine Nuts
Salt & Pepper to Taste

Directions:
Place all ingredients into a food processor and blend! Add more olive oil if the Pesto is too thick.

What can you do with Pesto?

Put Pesto on a Burger with some Mozzarella and a Slice of Tomato
Use Pesto instead of Tomato Sauce as your base for a Little Pizza
Make Pesto Pasta. Yum!
Spread it on Rustic Italian Bread (as a snack or part of a sandwich)
Spoon it into an Ice Cube Tray and Freeze It to Use Later! (you can bag the pesto cubes once they have frozen solid)