Pasta with Cilantro Pesto and Red Peppers

Ever since this appeared in the May '02 issues of Vegetarian Times Jess and I have been addicted. The dish is a staple of our summer cooking and can last for up to a week, which is good since it makes a ton. I have changed the recipe a bit over time to our taste, so it is different from the original publication.

Cilantro Pesto
1/4 cup slivered almonds
1 1/2 cups cilantro leaves
1 jalapeño pepper, seeded and coarsely chopped
2-3 cloves garlic, crushed and peeled
1/2 tsp. salt
2 Tbs. olive oil
2 fresh limes, juice both and discard seeds
1/4 tsp. freshly ground pepper
Onion Mixture
Olive oil (just enough to cook the onion up with)
1 cup chopped sweet onion, such as Vidalia
1 cup diced red bell pepper
4oz. can mild green chilies
1 box orecchiette or medium shell pasta (the spelt/whole wheat pasta works here)
1 cup grated Pepper Jack cheese

Directions:

1. Bring large pot of lightly salted water to a boil.
2. Meanwhile, make pesto: In small dry skillet, toast almonds over medium-low heat, stirring constantly, until light golden and fragrant, 3 to 4 minutes.Transfer to small bowl and let cool.
3. In food processor, combine almonds, cilantro, jalapeño, garlic, salt and pepper; process until finely chopped. With motor running, add 2 Tbs. oil and lime juice through the feed tube, processing until mixture forms paste and stopping to scrape down sides of work bowl as necessary. Transfer mixture to small bowl
4. Add pasta to boiling water and cook.
5. While pasta is cooking, in large nonstick skillet, heat 2 tsp. oil over medium-high heat. Add onion and bell pepper; cook, stirring often, until tender, 5 to 6 minutes. Add green chilies and cook, stirring, 1 minute.
6. Just before pasta is cooked, scoop out 1/3 cup of pasta cooking water and add to pesto, stirring well.
7. Drain pasta and transfer to large, warm bowl.
8. Add onion mixture and cheese; toss to coat well.

Serve immediately.

We had a dry white wine with this one night and have had summer ale with it is the past. This is the perfect dish for the beach or picnic because it travels very well.

Buttermilk Vichyssoise with Watercress

This came from an old martha stewart article. I only use buttermilk and not cream so as to cut down on the fat. Also, its good to have a little extra veggie stock around to thin out the soup as it is very thick initially. Tasty both chilled and room temp. Recipe makes alot, so cut in half for two people.

3 tablespoons unsalted butter
4 leeks, white and light-green parts only, halved lengthwise then thinly sliced into half-moons, washed well and drained
3 lg white potatoes, peeled and cut into 1-inch pieces
4 1/2 cups veggie stock (chicken stock works too)
1 bunch cleaned watercress leaves, loosely packed
Coarse salt and freshly ground white pepper
2 cups buttermilk (or 1 cup buttermilk and 1 cup half-and-half)

1. Melt butter in a stockpot over medium-low heat. Add leeks, and cook, covered, until tender, about 15 minutes.
2. Add potatoes, stock, and 2 cups water. Bring to a boil; simmer until potatoes are tender, about 20 minutes. Cool completely; stir in 2/3rds of the watercress.
3. Working in batches, purée soup in a blender until smooth. Transfer puréed soup to a large bowl. Season with salt and white pepper. Chill at least 1 hour. Add buttermilk just before serving. Adjust seasoning as needed. If necessary, thin the soup with a bit more stock or water to achieve desired consistency. Garnish with remaining cup watercress leaves.

Serve with crusty warm bread and a nice white wine. We paired King Estate Pinot Gris with it and it was very very tasty!

the sunday cook-off

i did a whole lot of cooking this sunday so that i would have a bunch of options to take with me to work for lunch. i didn't actually get to make everything i was hoping to make, but i will take care of that during the week.

details to come on...
Peach Cobbler
Cliantro Pesto Summer Pasta
Vichyssoise
Baked Soy and Pepper Tofu w/ ginger soy dipping sauce
Tatziki (modified to be less salty)
+ wine/drink we paired with each dish, whether it was good or not ^^

super excited because david is coming to town this weekend and we haven't seen him is almost 3 years. still looking for a new job much closer to home and actually have a few good leads.