dinner duty, night 1 = pesto

While Ryan's been helping our friends renovate their new home, I've been on dinner duty. Monday night, I turned this:




2 C firmly packed basil leaves
1/4 C toasted pine nuts
3 large cloves of garlic, toasted
1/4 freshly grated Parmesan
7 TBSP of the best Extra Virgin Olive Oil we have
salt & pepper to taste



into this:


I tossed the pesto with whole wheat fusilli pasta and a little of the pasta water to thin it out. I served it with Caprese salad: fresh, local tomatoes (since mine STILL aren't ripe yet), fresh mozzarella, fresh basil from my garden, and drizzled it with extra virgin olive oil and balsamic vinegar.



Tuesday we had grilled onions, peppers, green beans, celery and carrots tossed with grilled, Asian-seasoned chicken breast that I tossed with Teriyaki sauce and served over herbed rice. However, my culinary ambitions ended there. The rest of the week we ate take-out.