Roasted Red Pepper Pesto - Two Ways

As is frequently the case when posting to this blog, I am eating leftovers of the dish I am going to be writing about. In my book, a recipe is *really* good when it makes it as leftovers. Also, a recipe ranks very high with me when it takes well to adaptation. This entry is about just such a recipe.

I often forget about certain ingredients, like roast bell peppers in this case. I seem to eliminate roasted peppers of any kind from my ingredient list because I have an electric stove and an apartment that lacks good ventilation, making it risky to roast my own. Out of desperation I have rediscovered the jarred roasted pepper, and, I have to say, they do the job quite well!

I was pushed towards experimenting with jarred peppers when I stumbled upon a roasted red pepper pesto on Sherry's blog. (She will be missed! For posts about Sherry visit this link) The photos of her pasta dish made my tastebuds tingle and I knew I had to try it. I didnt have all the ingredients the original recipe called for so I changed it up to suit what was on hand. The result was surprisingly refreshing and took no more than three minutes to assemble. Plus, since this pesto is simply blended, it only requires the cooking of pasta which cuts down on kitchen heat. The meal was a special treat since my mom had brought back beautiful pasta from her recent trip to Italy. The end result was aromatic and gorgeous.


Roasted Red Pepper and Lemon Basil Pesto

1 garlic clove
3 roasted red bell peppers
4 large walnuts
1/3 c. lemon basil
1/4 c. parmesan
salt and pepper*
1/4 c. olive oil
1 lb. pasta cooked

In a blender or food processor combine the first seven ingredients. Top hot pasta with the pesto mixture and add parm to your liking.

*Because the pasta sauce is not cooked and doesnt have time to meld, I tend to add more salt than I normally would.

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Given the fact that the first pesto recipe was to die for, I tried another variation of it for dinner two nights ago. The basil at the grocery store was kinda sad but the cilantro looked wonderful, so I opted to season the pesto with cilantro and took a non-traditional route. I also didnt have any parm on hand since I had yet to go to Trader Joe's (and there is no way I am buying parm from Target) but I had about 2 oz. of goat cheese in the fridge and figured that would work well. In the end the pasta dish had a rich mediterranean flavor that I will crave again and again!


Cilantro Pesto with Roasted Red Peppers

1 clove garlic
3 roasted red peppers
1/3 c. cilantro leaves
2 oz. goat cheese
4 large walnuts
salt and pepper*
1/4 c. olive oil
1 lb. cooked pasta


Combine the first 7 ingredients in a blender or food processor and pour atop hot pasta.

I added 16 oz. of artichoke hearts and several chopped green onions to get more veggies in the dish.

If you experiment with variations on this dish please forward it on since I love to hear how people have amended recipes to suit their tastes.

Posh Moments

There are few times when grad students really get to live it up. Generally, a living it up event involves mass quantities of cheap beer. Thankfully, I am a bit of a food and beverage snob and I refuse to inflict that horrid substance on my body. Instead, I try to find something to celebrate everyday.

This week I have had a pretty good run of breakfasts. Since I have to spend money on food anyways I tend to spend a few more dollars to avoid the top ramen and purchase fresh ingredients. This week I got greek yogurt from the international food market in town, fresh lemons, and raspberries. Though I still cant get over how much I have to pay for citrus in this state, I do love the fact that raspberries are available even in the dead of winter. I also managed to snag the last carton of chives. Being that they were the last available, I am going to overlook the fact that they are probably a tad wilty and enjoy them regardless.

Armed with the fresh ingredients I made two very posh breakfasts. These are the simplest ingredients and for some reason people just dont think to combine them when they are in their own homes. They will, of course, spend over $10 to order them when out at a restaurant (Let me know if you want to send me $10, I will email you my postal address). The greatest thing about these meals is that they are ready in under 5 minutes. They actually take longer to have their photo shoot.
Lemon Camembert Scramble with Chives

2 eggs
1/4 c. heavy cream
1/4 c. camembert
1 lemon worth of zest
2 t. chives
salt & pepper

Heat some olive oil in a pan.

Whisk together eggs, cream, lemon zest, salt, and pepper.

Cube the camembert into small bits and stir into the egg mixture.

Add the eggs to the pan and scramble like a mad person.

When cooked to your liking (I like my eggs a little drier than some do), plate the eggs and top with the chopped chives.



Raspberry Tangerine Yogurt with Cardamom

1 c. greek yogurt
2 t. agave nectar*
1/3 t. cardamom
1 tangerine worth of zest
1/2 c. raspberries

Combine all the ingredients but the raspberries.
Top with raspberries so they dont get bruised in the mixing process.

* I use the agave nectar to add a bit of sweetness to the tart yogurt. You can also add honey, splenda, or sugar.

Brain Food

In the evenings I can almost always be found on my couch. I am not curled up watching a movie with a nice cup of hot cocoa. I am sitting with my computer on my lap (much like I am doing now), typing up my Master's thesis. There comes a point around 7pm when I realize that I havent eaten, that I am quite hungry, and that nothing is defrosted. Hm, what to do?


One time I made a turkey sausage sandwich with the last precious little bit of gorgonzola and caramelized shallots on toasted ciabatta bread. Granted nearly everything tastes good when you are nearing starvation, but I would guess that this meal tasted good even when full. In truth, I could have polished off two of these but didnt have enough foresight to defrost two sausages instead of just one.

On another occasion, after reading about all the superfoods you should eat on a daily/weekly basis I was inspired by soy beans. I ended up throwing some sliced scallions into some hot oil, adding some mint that I had wilting away in the fridge, and sauteing it all until the flavors combined. Then I tossed in the edamame I had nuked to defrost. I accompanied the soy dish with two toasted ciabatta (same loaf) slices. That 5 minute meal was mighty tasty as well.


For curious readers, my Master's is coming along. I will know the extent of the work cut out for me after I receive comments from my committee sometime next week. Until then (and probably after as well) I will be eating well.

Final Product - Harvest Grains Salad

A few posts ago I wanted suggestions with what to do with my Harvest Grains blend from Trader Joe's. I got an overwhelming response of one, count it - one, comment regarding how I could add it to a soup. When the weather cools to soup weather, I will try throwing some of it in a soup for certain. Given, however, that it isnt soup weather in Lafayette and this grad student is too cheap to keep her apartment below 82 degrees, I made an almost-no-cook-salad. Its actually what I have been eating for lunch all week. Sadly, I am now out of it. The concoction I created was really very flavorful and refreshing if I dont say so myself. Even K liked it, but thats not really a surprise.

I had purchased a bunch of veggies for the week and I threw them into the salad, so really this can and should be amended to include whatever fresh ingredients you happen to have on hand. As much as I don't like the food that Rachel Ray cooks on her show, I do appreciate that she teaches her audience a method which can later be used on other foods. This recipe is somewhat similar in that you can take the general principle and whip up your own version. This particular version turned into something with the Mediterranean flavors or artichoke, lemon, and green olives.



Almost-No-Cook Harvest Grains Salad

1 1/4 cup Harvest Grains (or Israeli Couscous)
1 3/4 chicken broth
1/2 bundle of asparagus - steamed and cut into 1 inch pieces
5 roasted artichoke hearts - halved and sliced
Handful of green olives - cut from the pit
4 scallions sliced (just the light green part)
1/3 cup flat leaf parsley chopped
zest from 1 lemon
1 garlic glove
2 tablespoons (or so) olive oil

Bring the chicken broth to a boil and add the harvest grains and the clove of garlic. Reduce to a simmer and cook for 10-12 minutes or until most of the liquid is gone. Remove from heat, add a bit of olive oil to coat the grains just so they don't stick while it cools. Remove the garlic clove. When the grains are cool enough to not wilt the rest of the ingredients, add them to the rest of the ingredients.

The harvest grains themselves makes about 3 cups worth so after adding the veggies you actually have a substantial amount of salad. Like I said, it lasted me three lunches.

My favorite thing about the Harvest Grains mix is that the combination of "grains" make it look super pretty and fairly complicated. In essence, it looks snooty even though this should be one of my Easy-Peasy meals. Again, its all about appearances and reality. In anthropology we call it mystification. It used to be that anthropologists would try and make what they did seem super important and very impressive by hiding the simplicity of it all behind scientific jargon that the popular masses knew nothing about. These days, however, anthropology is leaning away from using science to confusticate readers and is instead employing the mumbo-jumbo of post-modern theory. Unlike the mystification that occurs in the social sciences, I do not feel that it is detrimental to society to make my food seem more impressive than it really is.

Easy-Peasy Recipe #1

Oftentimes I find that I get wrapped up in cooking fancy recipes that use a multitude of ingredients that I, of course, have to purchase on my grad student budget. Oftentimes, my budget isn't big enough for it all, but what do I do? Do I sit on my couch and pout? NO!

I remember that it doesn't have to be so complicated, demanding, and expensive. Thats when I make one of my backup recipes that takes no time, few ingredients, and creates leftovers. Every ingredient in this recipe is an item I have stocked at all times.

Easy-Peasy Recipe #1 - Tacos

1 baggie of frozen ground meat of your choice (in this case I have turkey)
1 80z can of tomatoes (diced, pureed, whole, or sauce - whichever you have)
Packaged taco/burrito/enchilada seasoning (again, whichever you happen to have)
Tortillas (optional)

Brown the meat until its halfway cooked. Add can of tomatoes and sprinkle seasoning packet over the cooking meat. Stir to combine and finish cooking meat completely.
Build your taco/burrito any way you like. I like to add beans, leftover rice, cheese, and cilantro. At this point it is a good idea to throw in stuff that you have in your fridge that might not be good in a few days. For me, this means I may add lettuce and fresh tomatoes and, if I am not planning on using that last lime for my tequila, then I might top the whole thing off with fresh lime juice.

The best thing about this meal is that the leftovers are great with eggs.