Pesto Pesto Pesto - This weekend on CBC Radio

I had the pleasure of presenting the uses of Pesto and its variants on CBC Weekend morning with Kerän Sanders. Enjoy pesto with a variety of herbs in so many ways.



Basic Pesto
A basic Pesto recipe is so easy to adapt to many available herbs. I love Arugula Pesto as well. For Arugula, use some spinach in the mix to round out the flavour of any particularly peppery variety as well as a splash of lemon juice. For Basil Pesto, I like to use Sweet, Vietnamese, Purple, and many other varieties in the mix to make a complex flavour.

1/4 lb fresh basil
3-4 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 cup toasted pinenuts (can use almonds)
1/3 cup Parmesan, grated
1/3 cup good olive oil
salt and pepper (cheese is salty so use very little salt)

Blend together into a paste. Freeze for later use or toss in pasta, on grilled meats, etc.

Halibut Papillote
1 fillet Halibut
Good amount of pesto (basil, arugula, etc)
salt and pepper
Parchment paper
drizzle olive oil

Preheat oven to 350º. Place filet on parchment paper and spoon a good amount of pesto on top of fillet. Seal paper as a package for each serving. Bake for ~ 14-16 minutes, depending on the thickness of the fish.


Pea Shoot Pesto
Ingredients:
1/4 lb fresh, young pea shoots
1 bunch chives, chopped (or spring onion)
2-3 cloves garlic, minced
1/3 cup Parmesan cheese
1/3 cup olive oil
1/4 cup toasted pinenuts
salt
pepper

to serve:
1 lb hot cooked pasta (try Nature's Pasta!)
1/2 lb peeled, grilled shrimp (optional)(simple recipe follows)
garnish: additional pea shoots

Directions:
Place the pea shoots, chives, garlic, cheese, olive oil, pine nuts salt and pepper in a food processor or blender, pulse until a thick paste forms. Toss with 1 lb cooked pasta, additional pea shoots and shrimp.

Yield: about 4 servings


One can use Pesto for a variety of applications as well. I love it in pasta but I often use it in other soups and sauces as well as stuffed in Chicken Breasts, or stuffed in Lamb Chops. When you are letting your BBQ’d steak rest, spoon a small amount onto the steak and let it melt into the grilled meat.