Pesto.

I had a rather large basil plant when I made this. It has since died, and I must start anew.  If you have your own homegrown basil, this is a great way to use it. If you can get a lot for cheap somewhere, that's fine too. If you can only find basil in the super small, super spendy packages at the grocery store, this may not be how you want to use it...but who am I to say? This is a good condiment, and works great if you have some on hand to stir into cooked pasta for a quick dinner. I'm told there are other uses, but I haven't explored them as yet.

Traditional Pesto

Recipe from: How to cook Everything Vegetarian, by Mark Bittman

Makes: about 1 cup pesto

Ingredients:

2 loosely packed cups fresh basil leaves, rinsed and dried (pat dried, not 'crunchy' dried)

salt

1/2 clove or more garlic

2 T. pine nuts or walnuts

1/2 c. extra virgin olive oil, or more

1/2 c. freshly grated parmesan, pecorino romano, or other hard cheese (optional) (I didn't use this)

Directions:

Combine the basil with a pinch of salt, the garlic, the nuts, and about half the oil in a food processor or blender.  Process, stopping to scrape down the sides of the container if necessary and adding the rest of the oil gradually.

Add more oil if you prefer a thinner mixture. Store in the refrigerator for a week or two or in the freezer for several months. Stir in the parmesan by hand just before serving. (I don't like parmesan, and so skipped this step.)

Baked/Shirred Egg.

I love this recipe because it's super simple, quick, and can be infinitely increased to feed however many people you need to feed, limited only by the number of ramekins or small baking dishes you have on hand. It also is easily varied, since you can throw in leftover veggies or meat, or fresh or dried herbs with the cream.

These are the basic ingredients. Like I said, add anything extra you want, though it is good simple too.

Butter the ramekin.

Add the cream. (A couple of teaspoons is plenty, though by all means add more if you wish.) Now is the time to add any extras you want.

Crack the egg in. I recommend separating the egg for this, so the yolk and white mix easier with the cream when baking. I didn't do that this time though, and it still turned out great, so again, you decide. (Don't you feel powerful? YOU control the recipe!)

Place on a baking sheet and bake in a 375°F oven for 10-15 minutes. (If your oven is normal, it should take about 12.) Don't overcook! When you pull it out, it will look a little runny, though the white should be cooked and the yolk set. It will continue to cook a bit, as the ramekin retains some heat.

Salt and Pepper to taste, then enjoy!

Thank you to Mark Bittman and his cookbook, How To Cook Everything, for the recipe.

Colorful Nachos.

I came across the photos of the recipe in my library and couldn't believe I forgot to share!  Hubby and I have been enjoying this off and on as an after church lunch since November, when I found the recipe.  It's fairly quick, and very easy, and oh so rewarding in the end! And, bonus, it's a lot healthier than most nacho recipes out there. (I like to tell myself that, anyway.)

Ingredients

1. 1 lb ground beef


2. 1 (1 1/8 ounce) package taco seasoning(you can get this in low sodium, and there's no noticeable difference, I highly reccomend it.)


3. 1 (16 ounce) can refried bean (Hubby and I are not fans of refried beans, so we just leave these out.)


4. 2 cups monterey jack and cheddar cheese blend


5. 1 (12 ounce) bag nacho cheese flavor Doritos


6. olives, sliced (optional)(we opt not to use these!)


7. tomato, diced (optional)(we like to use 3 or 4 romas, diced, without the seeds or juice(not as runny or gooey then!))


8. green onion, sliced (optional)(lots of these!)


9. jalapeno, sliced (optional)

Directions

1. Brown ground beef until all pink is gone.


2. Add taco packet plus 1/2 cup of water and stir until mixed in well.


3. Add can of refried beans to taco meat and add water until a good spreading consistency is reached (depends on how thick your beans are.).(Again, we leave the beans out, so this step is skipped. No harm comes of it, I assure you!)


4. In a 9x13 casserole dish, spread out half of the bag of doritos. Top with 1/2 of the meat/bean mixture and 1/2 of the cheese. Put any optional toppings on now.


5. Place the 2nd half of everything on top of the first layer in the same order.


6. Bake in a 350* oven for about 15 minutes until all the cheese is melted.


7. Serve with guacamole, sour cream and salsa. (Or none of the above.  Hubby and I prefer the nachos as is, out of the oven.)

Pseudo-Bento Lunch.

This was a quickly thrown together lunch for Hubby and me between a large breakfast and an early dinner.  We split the plate, though he didn't like the veggies I chose, so I got them all to myself.  I wasn't going to put celery on, but I decided there wasn't enough color on the plate, and so added it with the happy face to finish.  The salsa is called Texas-Style Salsa, from Harry and David's.

My Favorite Chicken Salad.

I love chicken salad for lunch.  I always set out to only have one sandwich, but I usually end up finishing however much I make.  Consequently, I make smaller batches now. :)  I don't follow a recipe for this, because I've found that I know my own taste best, and I like to adjust it each time I make it to what I want at the time. (Many thanks to Hubby for taking most of these pictures!)

Ingredients:

Mayonnaise

Chicken (I've made this with fresh cooked chicken, but I generally use canned, and don't mind the minor difference.)

1/2 Apple

Grapes (I prefer red grapes, but any kind will do)

Celery

Green Onions (Usually I use chopped white or red onion, but I had some green I needed to use, and it works just as well, though I put a bit more than I would of the chopped onion.)

Marjoram

Savory

Dill Weed (This is the only one of the spices that remains constant...I love dill weed in chicken salad!)

Curry Powder

Black Pepper (not pictured...last minute impulse add)

Instructions:

First, dump your chicken into a medium sized mixing bowl. (Drain it first, if you're using canned.)

Canned chicken doesn't always look so pretty coming out of the can, but unless stated otherwise, it is cooked and quite edible. :)

Slice the grapes into the bowl.  I like to simply halve them, but if you want, you can cut them as small as you like.  You're never supposed to cut towards yourself, though that's exactly what I'm doing in the picture below.  Whenever you do, be sure to cut slowly so the knife doesn't slip.

As grapes aren't exactly in season now, raisins do make an excellent substitute, if you don't mind the change in texture.

Next slice your onions and sprinkle them into the bowl, sparingly.  Onion is one flavor that will get stronger in this salad if you plan to store any of it overnight.  Much stronger.

(We tried to capture the onions actually falling, but despite getting a great series of photos of my hand emptying, no onions were caught mid-air.)

Dice your celery to preferred size. I like mine fairly small, so I slice in strips first, then cut crosswise.

Same goes for slicing the apples.  I usually use a sweeter apple, such as a Gala, or a Pink Lady (my favorite!) but I had Granny Smiths on hand for baking, so they were subbed in.

Next, add your spices.  I usually go by scent on this one.  You want your food to smell good, or you'll have a hard time believing it tastes good; nothing should smell overpowering, but it should smell like more than just your onion.  Have fun with this.  Open random spice jars, ones you don't usually use, and just see what they smell like.  If it smells good, dump a little bit in.  A bit of advice though...decide on all your spices before dumping in.  Some spices don't mix well.  (Think mint, cayenne, and fennel. Blech.  Then again, if you like it...)

After all your other ingredients are mixed together, add your mayo.  I like to add it last because I think it coats more evenly that way.  Start with a little bit, and increase the amount to desired consistency.  Its easy to get too much, so be careful!

Once all your ingredients are together, mix it up, and you're ready to eat!  If you want more potent flavors, let the chicken salad marry in the fridge for a bit first (a few hours at least) and everything will be a bit more flavorful.I couldn't wait, though.  

MMMM, Delicious!