Oh, Yay! The Farmers’ Market is open, and there’s food! Real, honest-to-goodness local, seasonal food!
I tried to be responsible; buying Basil is just silly. There will be tons growing in my own garden before long. But I couldn’t resist. It’s the call of the pesto, don’tcha know? And boy, was it yummy!
The first picture shows chicken grilling with a bit of green onion (not too green, but springtime onion). The second is when I added a bunch of chopped spinach. And the third is everything all ready to go on a bed of lettuce.
The Pesto Dressing
- A big wad of Basil. Maybe enough to fill a 2-cup pyrex, if you stuff it lightly inside.
- A couple of tablespoons of Parmesan
- A couple of tablespoons of nuts. (I actually used some ground almonds I had left over from making a curry.)
- Oil or dressing. I used the olive-oil mayonnaise I sort-of-accidentally made a while back. Perfect!
- A little salt, depending on the dressing.
Stuff the basil leaves in your mini-chopper and whirr. I filled it once, processed, then stuffed the rest in. It doesn’t make much, once you grind up the leaves.
If the nuts aren’t chopped yet, add them next, and grind a bit more. Less grinding=more crunch, more grinding=more smooth. Then add Parmesan and oil or creamy stuff.
The finished product
Put a bed of spring lettuce on a place, and serve up the chicken and spinach on top of it, still warm. Then pour (or glop) the pesto on top.
Of course, I forgot to take a picture of the dish, because I was too busy eating that wonderful plate of springtime. Heavenly!
