Mixed Pesto Sauce with Nuts

Let's talk about basil. This is a perfect time--basil in pots and gardens is ready to be harvested, fresh and unbelievably aromatic.

I cannot imagine my life without the pesto sauce. About once in ten days my kids ask for "green sauce pasta" which is pasta served with pesto. Most easy and one of the most delicious pasta dishes.

I have known the pesto sauce for over two decades but I never bought it. I always make my own, as organic as possible. I grow my own basil, I add the best oils and once in a while a make a big jar of pesto, which I serve fresh and I freeze the rest in small containers. Then unfrozen it is always fresh and bright green as on the day I make it.

Over the years, I also came up with some modification to load my pesto with vitamins and all the good stuff that my kids do not like to eat. Although mostly made of basil leaves my pesto has also half a cup of parsley. Besides traditionally used pine nuts I toast some pumpkin seeds and a bit of walnuts. I also use two types of oil: extra virgin olive and rice bran oil. This way my pesto is full of vitamins and, thanks to basil and parsley, one serving of pasta with my pesto sauce delivers daily requirements of vitamins K, A and C and, because of all types of nuts and oils used in it, also vitamins E, omega-3 fatty acids, selenium, and magnesium.

For extra taste I add a squeeze of lemon juice, which you will not find in the traditional recipes, but which preserves the sauce and its color and adds an extra taste to it which my kids enjoy more than the more bland taste of the traditional pesto.

Mixed Pesto Sauce with Nuts

Ingredients:
1 large bunch (about 2 cups) fresh basil leaves,
1/2 cup curled parsley leaves,
1 cup best extra virgin olive oil,
1/3 cup rice bran oil,
juice from half a lemon,
2-3 garlic cloves,
1/4 cup pine nuts,
2 tbsp pumpkin seeds,
2 tbsp walnuts,
1/3 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese,
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste.

Preparation:
1. Place all the ingredients except the Parmesan in a blender and run the blender until you obtain a smooth creamy sauce.

2. Transfer the sauce to a bowl, add the Parmesan, and mix well with a spoon. Serve fresh with pasta or freeze for future use in a tightly closed, preferably glass, containers.

Raspberry Tart with Cheese and Honey Cream

Raspberries are among my favorite fruits. When fresh and sweet, they taste best simply on their own, or just toasted on light summer desserts.

As raspberries are now in season and available everywhere, not surprisingly, this recipe came to my mind during my latest food shopping. It is a very easy and delicious dessert, perfect for this season when raspberries are easy to get, inexpensive, and sweet. I used to make it quite often in the past, but somehow I have never made it since I started this blog.

Recently, I make desserts only when I cook dinners for friends, so last week, while having my neighbors for an impromptu dinner, I made this cake to take pictures and get their opinion. They liked it a lot and complimented everything: the crust, the cream, and the presentation.

This tart is made almost entirely in a food processor. Only the base is baked. The crust for this cake is very short but also kind of grainy which gives the whole tart an interesting texture. There is a thin layer of cream on it and then a lot of raspberries on top.

I like this tart so much because, like many European desserts, it is not too sweet. The cream cheese and crème fraîche filling is sweetened only with a little bit of honey. But when you bite a piece of this tart, the crunchiness of the base blends with the soft cream and delicate juicy raspberries drizzled with honey and, for a moment, you feel in your mouth a summer heaven from Provence or Tuscany.

Raspberry Tart with Cheese and Honey Cream
(For a 10-inch tart form with removable bottom)

Ingredients:

For the crust:
1 and 1/4 cup all purpose flour,
7 tbsp butter, cut into thick slices,
1 large egg,
1/4 cup sugar,
a generous pinch of salt.

For the topping:
1 pack 8 oz cream cheese at room temperature,
1/4 cup crème fraîche (sour cream can be a substitute if crème fraîche is not available),
1/4 cup running honey, plus extra 2 tbsp,
1 lb (3-4 cups) of fresh raspberries,

Preparation:
1. To make crust, put flour, butter, sugar, egg, and salt in a food processor. Pulse until ingredients create crumbles. Transfer them to a lightly buttered tart form. Press them to the bottom and sides of the form with fingers and let chill for a minimum of one hour.
2. Preheat oven to 350 F and bake the crust for 25-30 minutes, until dark gold. Let it cool completely.
3. To make cream filling, using an electric mixer beat cream cheese, honey and crème fraîche until smooth. Spread evenly on the bottom of the crust.
4. Decorate the top of the tart with raspberries and drizzle with remaining the 2 tbsp of honey.

5. Gently remove the tart from the pan by removing the wall. Place on the serving plate. Serve at room temperature. The tart can be kept in a refrigerator for up to three days.

Fresh Gazpacho--One-Ingredient Delight

I love gazpacho and make it quite often during hot summer days when I can get field tomatoes that taste best. It is one of the easiest fresh soups, entirely made in a food processor. The best gazpacho I ever tasted was the original, Spanish one--very smooth, almost orange in color.

But a couple weeks ago I was at the party at our Spanish friend's place. He prepared gazpacho entirely from fresh tomatoes. And that was the best gazpacho I ever had. It seemed sparkling from the sherry vinegar, so smooth as if it was whipped, delicate, and so light that it was served in cups like a drink.

As other people already enjoyed grilled meats and there were still many goblets with gazpacho left I discreetly had three of them. And of course I asked our friend about the secret of his soup, which turned out to be that he uses only fresh tomatoes, and only a bit of olive oil and sherry vinegar.

Two days later, when I got some very ripe and juicy tomatoes, my version of his soup was ready. It is indeed almost a one-ingredient soup and the only difficulty comes with straining the soup after it is puréed first, to get rid of the peel and seeds. It takes away some part of the volume so you end up with much less than when you make gazpacho with other vegetables and tomato juice. But if you are a connoisseur of real food, this gazpacho is a summer delight worth making and trying.

Fresh Gazpacho
(Serves six)

Ingredients:
3 lb ripe, juicy tomatoes,
2 small garlic cloves,
1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil,
3-4 tbsp sherry vinegar,
salt and pepper.

Preparation:
1. Wash tomatoes, cut in quarters and place them in a food processor. Pulse the blender several times until tomatoes make a smooth cream.

2. Strain the sauce through a colander with small holes or a sieve to discard the peel and skins.
3. Return the tomato sauce to the blender, add garlic, salt, pepper, and vinegar. Blend all the ingredients until creamy. Add slowly olive oil in three parts and blend well again.
4. Let it chill for about 1/2 hour and serve in glass goblets.