UPDATE: 9/9/13 Pesto & Pesto Chicken Salad Sandwiches

Update- Pesto Chicken Salad sandwiches: I think my proportions have been all wrong. I now use 1 full cup of pesto to 1/2 cup Greek Yogurt, and the rest of the recipe as usual. (The recipe link is way on the bottom of this post.)

And this pesto is a bit different. I think the recipe is the same BUT the garlic AND the pine nuts are both toasted. Yum.

 

6/5/10Last summer was the Summer of Pesto. I discovered pesto and then tried growing my own basil. Ithink I did pretty well! I started supplementing my meager harvests with cheap bundles of basil from farmer's markets. I couldn't keep up my demand though :) I had a few 1/2 cup bags frozen for a bit but I did use it up quickly.

This first pesto picture is from last summer. It's a very good basic pesto recipe. No fuss.

Click here for the stolen recipe for last summer's Pesto.

I made this next pesto yesterday with a new recipe. I already mentioned it but here is the recipe again. I can't say if this will be my new recipe yet but it was just as simple. It's a neat shade of green! Very fresh looking.

Click here for the stolen recipe for this Pesto.

And ooooh here's my picture of the Pesto Chicken Salad Sandwiches from last summer. We've usually served them in pita bread with some fresh greens. I follow the recipe kinda but I use about 1/2 cup of my pesto and about 1/4 cup of Greek yogurt with all of the other ingredients. It's a wonderful sandwich!

Click here for the stolen recipe for Pesto Chicken Salad Sandwiches.

I can't say that I'll be making a lot of pesto this summer. Pine nut prices are a bit much. I think I heard a mention of a shortage? Bummer.

 

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Thai Ground Turkey with Basil and Chiles

 

I really appreciated this recipe! I've been craving rice lately and I love these flavors- it reminds me of Big Bowl's Spicy Basil Chicken. Jim and I both agreed that the spice was just right, or maybe I could bring it down a notch so we could notice the other flavors because there is a lot going on here!

Ginger, garlic, soy sauce, fish sauce, chiles, peanuts, basil, lime, Sriracha, peanuts, green onions, mmmmmmmm.

I'm sure ground turkey is not Thai. It makes for a lighter, healthier meal so I didn't mind it at all. Jim suggested shrimp for next time. We also agreed on more sauce.

I spilled all over the recipe so I'm going to need to print out a new copy. I really, really need to. This recipe is a keeper. (I discovered that if I don't have recipes printed out and organized in my binder, I don't repeat them.)

Click here for the stolen recipe for Thai Ground Turkey with Basil and Chiles.

 

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Pesto Turkey Burgers

 

MMMMMM pesto. It's really just a burger. Jazzed up with some pesto and grilled onions but it was nice to follow a recipe and learn from it. I really just need to get in my kitchen and throw my favorite foods into some ground turkey or beef and create!

This was good but I wish I had had some extra pesto to smear in each of the burgers. I didn't have enough for the recipe and the smearing.

Click here for the stolen recipe for Pesto Turkey Burgers.

 

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Watermelon Basil Agua Fresca

The fancy, edited picture.

The ordinary picture.

Watermelon is on sale at Cub. A nice man in the produce department helped me pick out a melon. He did good. I knew I wanted to puree watermelon and freeze it into cubes but I can't find my ice cube trays. Darn.

I also have my basil plants that needed to be trimmed, especially before the intense heat dries them out. Pine nuts are extremely expensive right now, so pesto needs to wait. I found this recipe just doing an online search for "watermelon agua fresca". How nice to use up (some of) my watermelon and basil.

I think I would make this without the basil next time, just to make the it the traditional way. But this is pretty yummy. It will be pretty refreshing tomorrow when my friend Sara and I are working here at my house. (We're doing school work.)

Click here for the stolen recipe for Watermelon Basil Agua Fresca.

Basil Chicken in Coconut Curry Sauce

The fresh basil really excited me. I can't wait to start growing basil again!

Jim really liked this dinner. I like when a new recipe really works. Some are duds and not worth repeating, but this one is a keeper. I think we're even going to add more vegetables to this recipe, or even switch up the chicken for shrimp. Yes, we are wild and crazy! The curry, the ginger, the jalapenos, the basil- all that came through and made a great dinner.

Click here for the stolen recipe for Basil Chicken in Coconut Curry Sauce.

Grilled Chicken (and shrimp) with Lemon Basil Pasta

Dinner last weekend was a collaborative effort. My sister brought over some wonderful wine and an interesting shaved asparagus salad (I can post later if there is a request for the recipe- I think shaved asparagus, olive oil, shaved parmesan, pepper?) . I swear, I learn the best kitchen tips and ideas from my sister. I would never have thought of using asparagus this way but I'm going to have to try it soon!

We made a Pioneer Woman recipe because you just can't go wrong with that. I prepped the cheese and squeezed the lemon juice (4 lemons) early and that made it a lot easier. The sauce pulled together quickly and the chicken was great (salted and peppered only, not following the PW directions), and the Garlic Butter shrimp from the butcher was an impulse buy that worked out well! We don't deal with uncooked shrimp around here, and now I just don't know why we haven't. They are so much better than the precooked stuff I usually make!

The pasta was so lemony and fresh. The basil came from my basil plants. Everything was really good!

Click here for the stolen recipe for Grilled Chicken with Lemon Basil Pasta.

Pesto, Herbs, and Chicken Pot Pie

I loved the chance to use some of my fresh herbs. I made pesto with a new recipe. I think it turned out well. I may have been heavy with the garlic but I like it. The blogger said that the secret ingredient in this pesto is butter. Butter! Butter makes everything nice.

I didn't use it right away but froze it for Wednesday. I'm having some friends over for dinner and I'm making Pesto Chicken Salad sandwiches. Oh wow, I realized I've never blogged about those. I will right after this entry. Promise.



Click here for the stolen recipe for Pesto.

I also used some of my thyme in a Spring Chicken Pot Pie. Yum! I think it was the best one yet.


We've had this pot pie a few times now and we think it's just amazing. And good for you! Well, besides the processed crust. One of my summer goals is to make a perfect pie crust, especially for this recipe!

Pesto Fraise Basilic (Strawberry Basil Pesto)

I didn't even know this kind of pesto existed until I was looking for a pesto recipe on the same website that wrote about the herb freezing technique. I typed in "pesto" in the search and many different kinds came up. I figured I'd try a traditional recipe, but maybe half it because I only had a handful of basil from my basil plants. And then I saw strawberry basil pesto. I wouldn't have imagined that combo.

So I made it because I had a lot of strawberries that were almost over ripe, and I knew my son wouldn't eat them. I had all of the ingredients so I decided to be wild and crazy.

I wish this had been crazy good but it was just good. It tastes like a sweet pesto. It looked pink at first but now its a dull gray green.

Click here for the recipe for Strawberry Basil Pesto.



I tried a bit of it in some pasta with chicken and cherry tomatoes. It was a light sauce, not overpowering.

I think I like regular pesto. I am intrigued by sun dried tomato pesto though... I saw that recipe on that blog. Maybe soon.