Summer Recipe: Pesto

There's just something so lovely about herbs in the summertime, especially basil.  I love the smell and taste of basil; there's just something so comforting and familiar about it, and I definitely felt a sense of accomplishment when I went to cut basil from my back deck today to use for dinner:

My husband asked if I would make pesto for dinner, and I was happy to oblige.  It's easy, convenient, and delicious.  In the past, I've associated pesto with pasta -- specifically gnocchi or tortellini.  But in my desire to rid my diet of processed foods, pasta isn't a healthy or practical dinner choice.  So, pesto chicken seemed like the tastiest and best option.

When I went to our local market to purchase chicken breast, I was faced with an economical and ethical decision.  Did I purchase the boneless chicken breast at $2.99 a pound, only labeled with a barcode and a price?  Clearly, that conventionally, farm produced chicken was pumped with hormones, antibiotics, potentially fed animal by-products, and who knows what else.  Or, did I buy the hormone free, antibiotic free, pure vegetarian diet chicken with a price tag of $7 a pound?  After a brief debate, I opted for the latter.  Quality of food is important to me, especially when dealing with meat.  I don't want to put unnecessary junk in my body.  If I'm going to "eat the earth" and consume foods in their most natural state, that means paying attention to labels and how foods are produced.  It's easy to forget that a piece of clean chicken was once an animal, and the way in which that animal was raised could potentially have a profound affect on my own health.

This afternoon, I cut my basil, and prepared all necessary ingredients:

Pesto:
-1/3 cup (organic) olive oil
-1/2 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese (this will definitely make it cheesy, which I love.  Scale back a bit, though, if you want it "less cheesy")
-1 garlic clove, minced
-2 cups fresh basil
-a sprinkle of black pepper
-a dash of sea salt (optional, since the cheese is pretty salty)

Place all ingredients in food processor; blend for 15 seconds.  Mix around as necessary; process again if needed.  Voila!  Pesto is ready.  My husband grilled the chicken and an eggplant, we cut up the chicken into bite sized pieces, and I mixed the pesto into the chicken for a little pesto chicken salad.

It was a delicious dinner, and perfectly eaten on our back deck as the sun went down.  Enjoy!

Feeding the Family on a Friday

Last Friday, I invited my whole family over for an evening of delicious, home cooked, (mostly) Primal/clean food.  Yum.
Normally I cook for two, so cooking for eight adults and one child made me nervous that I wouldn't have enough food.  So, I planned to make a lot and made two grocery runs. (Side note: my two favorite stores in this world would have to be grocery stores and book stores!)

On my dinner menu:
-chicken
-sirloin steak
-scallops (the only seafood I ever make)
-sweet potatoes
-broccoli
-salad

I also bought fresh ciabatta bread.  I didn't eat any, and I feel a bit of a hypocrite for purchasing it, although it made my brother happy.

On Thursday, I purchased and marinated a five pound, "all natural" chicken.  (By all natural, antibiotic free).

For the marinade:

-Juice from five lemons
-zest from two lemons (note: peel the zest first, then squeeze the juice from the lemon.  A lemon press is a huge help and a great investment as well)
-six garlic gloves, minced (I always use my garlic press)
-1/2 cup olive oil
-2 tablespoons fresh, chopped rosemary

Mix all these ingredients together in a large mixing bowl.
Rub down chicken with a teaspoon of sea salt
Place said chicken in the bowl, and marinade overnight (make sure you flip the chicken once, and cover the bowl with plastic wrap before putting in the fridge)

To cook, I put the chicken in a roasting pan, pre-heated the oven at 375 degrees, and popped that bad baby in for two hours.  

To the bottom of the roaster, I added  5 sliced sweet potatoes.  I coated the sweet potatoes lightly in olive oil and added about a tablespoon and a half of fresh, chopped rosemary.

NOTE: the lemon juice from the chicken was definitely infused in the sweet potatoes.  I liked it and would do it again, but it was an interesting taste.  If you're not up for lemony sweet potatoes, put them in a separate pan in the oven.

For the scallops:

-1 pound of fresh scallops

-Juice from 1/2 lemon (just a quick squeeze by hand)

-1 tablespoon fresh, chopped cilantro 

-3 large garlic cloves, minced

-1 tablespoon olive oil

Heat olive oil in a pan over medium heat

add garlic for about two to three minutes

add scallops to mix and pan sear for about five or six minutes, cooking them on both sides

add lemon juice

cook for two to three minutes; turn up heat to medium high to burn off excess juices

add cilantro; remove from heat when juices are nearly gone and scallops are cooked!

Steak:  dry rub (Montreal seasoning (don't add too much): grilled on stove top over medium heat).  I had somewhere between 1 1/2 to 2 pounds of meat.

Salad:

-arugula (4 ounces)

-red lettuce (1/2 head)

-green lettuce (1/2 head)

-green onions, chopped (approximately 1/4 cup)

-one orange pepper, chopped

-one yellow pepper, chopped

-one small cucumber, thinly sliced

-one pint grape tomatoes, sliced in half

-feta cheese (1/3 cup and it can always be omitted)

salad dressing was simply olive oil and balsamic vinegar, at the discretion of the consumer:

I also made:
Four heads broccoli, steamed

And a sauce to go along with the broccoli (my family loves it), which consisted of:
-1/4 cup olive oil
-1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
-1 teaspoon organic dijon mustard (I like Annie's Naturals)
-1 large garlic clove, minced
-a squeeze of lemon juice

Final product:

And a very happy family was fed and satiated.  

Clearly, I love rosemary, garlic, olive oil, and lemon, and consider them to be some of my staple ingredients in my kitchen.  It is a sad day when I run out of garlic, and I always buy heads (never used it from a jar).

What's the best thing you've cooked (or eaten) lately?