Do you Pesto or Pistou?

Spaghetti tossed with Basil Pistou and Asparagus

I enjoy both cooking and dining out. Trying out new restaurants is a hobby of mine that I wish I could indulge in more in the future when I complete my research project and can then go back to work full-time (did I just say that I was looking forward to working full-time??!!).

One of the reasons that I love about eating out is that I discover new things all the time and it inspires what I do in my own kitchen. A few weekends ago, we were in the Blue Mountains for an engagement party. We had lunch at a lovely courtyard bistro there. As usual, I carefully perused the menu and this caught my attention: "Organic Vegetable Soup with Garlic Pistou, served with a side of soughdough baguette". Hmmm... never seen that word “pistou” before. So of course I had to order it. When my soup arrived, I discovered that pistou looked and tasted very similar to pesto. The soup was perfectly complimented by the pistou.

After some research on the internet, I discovered this interesting article “Pistou and Pesto: Basil's Last Stand” by Kate Heyhoe. I enjoyed reading this article because she discussed both pesto and pistou. I learnt that pistou is a French sauce from Provence similar to pesto, but without pine nuts and Parmesan. Kate explained that the basic French pistou traditionally uses only basil, olive oil, garlic and salt. I think this is great for vegans and also those allergic to nuts. Kate also has a recipe for Soupe au Pistou, a famous soup in French cuisine, some may refer to as a Provencal version of minestrone.

Freezing Pistou & Pesto: For those of you who are heading towards cooler months, freezing pistou may be a good idea. You can always add in pine nuts and Parmesan later if you wanted to have pesto instead. Susan of Food Blogga wrote in this post that her husband, Jeff, made a good suggestion about how to freeze pesto while retaining the green colour - stop the oxidation process by covering the top of it with olive oil.

After having my first taste of pistou, I was craving for it. It’s warming up in Sydney (20 bushfires recorded last weekend), so I wasn’t keen on making soup to go with the pistou. Instead, I wanted to prepare a pasta dish that still tastes good at room temperature. I also wanted to use asparagus. Asparagus is currently in peak season in Australia and the prices will soon go as low as $1 a bunch.

Spaghetti with Basil Pistou and Asparagus

250g thin (no. 4) spaghetti
Basil pistou (recipe here)
Asparagus, sliced diagonally into 4 & lightly steamed
Handful of semi-dried tomatoes, sliced thinly
2 rounded tbsp capers, drained & halved

salt & freshly cracked pepper

Optional: roughly grated Parmesan cheese

Preparation:
- Cook the pasta according to package directions. Reserve some of the pasta cooking liquid.
- Drain pasta and immediately toss it with the pistou and all other ingredients (except for cheese, salt & pepper). If the pasta seems a bit dry, add some of the reserved pasta liquid or add more olive oil.

- Adjust seasoning with salt & pepper if needed.
- Serve immediately as it is or with some parmesan cheese.

This pasta dish is versatile because it can be served at room temperature. If serving later, cover with cling film to prevent the dish from drying out. Quikong suggested using grilled cherry tomatoes instead of the semi-dried ones. This pasta was perfect for a spring picnic. To take this dish up a notch, I served it with grilled scallops.

I love scallops, especially those with roe on. If you want to know more about how to buy and cook scallops, have a look here. The roes can be of different colours and it does taste slightly different. I prefer the darker orange coloured roe because it has a richer flavour. See how pretty they are even when they are raw:

Raw Scallops

Grilled Scallops

8 raw scallops, with roe on
1 garlic clove, crushed
Dash of freshly squeezed lemon juice
Salt & pepper

Preparation:
- Toss all the ingredients together. Scallops require very little salt, so don't be too heavy handed with the seasoning. Let it marinate in the fridge for 20- 30 minutes.
- On a hot grill, cook scallops till they turn opaque. Scallops should be very slightly undercooked.
- Devour!

This week's PPN # 32: It's been a while since I participated in Ruth's Presto Pasta Night, so thankfully I remembered to take photos of this meal. Ruth, I hope you enjoyed this post :-)

Garlicky Olive Prawn Penne

"Northwest to westerly winds becoming strong and gusty, reaching gale force at times during the afternoon and evening...". It was indeed very gusty. I was shivering as I walked home from the bus stop this evening. Shivering and famished. I secretly hoped that Quikong had already started cooking. Surprisingly, he has even finished cooking. When he cooks, we usually end up eating after 9pm. I'm not complaining because he's a great cook and has cooked elaborate meals in the past. As I tucked into the pasta, I realised why he was in such a hurry to finish cooking - a live football game was being televised.

Quikong prepared a very delicious dinner that warmed me up quickly. He allowed me to post his recipe on one condition - that I write about Paul Newman's Own products. We usually make our own tomato sauce for pasta, but when we buy ready made pasta sauce for "emergency" situations (=whip up a meal quickly) it has to be Paul Newman's Own tomato sauce. Since 1984, Paul Newman has given more than $9 million to charities in Australia and New Zealand. All profits (after taxes) from the sale of his products worldwide are donated to charities. To date, this has exceeded $200 Million. If all of us buy one of his products every so often, imagine what a difference it makes for those who are less fortunate.

Here's Quikong's recipe. I'm sorry that I don't have exact quantities of the ingredients because I wasn't there when he cooked and he can't recall exactly what he did :-)

Garlicky Olive Prawn Spelt Penne
Serves 2

Half a jar (750g) of Paul Newman's Own Tomato Sauce (classic or organic marinara)
4-5 garlic cloves, minced EV olive oil
8 pitted kalamata olives, roughly chopped
16 raw prawns, shelled, deviend & tails removed
tobasco sauce or chilli flakes
fresh basil, roughly torn
250g spelt penne

Method:

Over medium heat, place olive oil in a saucepan. Saute garlic in olive oil till fragrant. Add prawns & cook till prawns turn pink. Add tomato sauce, olives & tobasco sauce/chilli flakes. Simmer & allow flavours to mingle. In the mean time, cook the spelt penne accordingly. When pasta is almost al dente, throw the basil in the sauce. Drain pasta, place pasta into two large bowls, spoon sauce over pasta and serve immediately.

This will be our contribution to Pasta Presto Night #19 hosted by Ruth.

Spinach and Ricotta Cannelloni with Pumpkin Tomato Sauce

I love spinach and ricotta cannelloni but I find the ones typically served at restuarants are too rich for me. I decided to make my own using low-fat ricotta cheese as well as some chopped walnuts for some added texture. For a change, I also added mashed pumkin in the tomato sauce.

This will be my submission for this week's Pasta Presto Night hosted by Ruth.

Spinach and Ricotta Cannelloni with Pumpkin Tomato Sauce
Serves 2

8 instant dried cannelloni tubes
120g frozen spinach, cooked in the microwave
200g low-fat ricotta cheese
handful of chopped walnuts
freshly ground nutmeg
salt & pepper

Sauce:
1 clove garlic, minced
1 medium onion, chopped
1 small can of diced tomato
2 tbsp tomato paste
a pinch of dried herb (e.g. oregano, basil, sage)
250g butternut pumpkin, steamed
salt & pepper

To serve:
Grated parmesan
Chopped walnuts

1

Preheat oven to 180°C. Lightly coat an ovenproof dish with olive oil .

2

The sauce: Sauté the garlic and onion in a little olive oil till golden and translucent. Add the can of tomatoes, tomato paste and herb. Simmer for about 10 minutes. Purée the sauce together with the cooked pumpkin till smooth and season. Set aside.

3

The filling: Place the ricotta in a large bowl. Use a fork to mash until smooth. Add the spinach, nutmeg (to taste), chopped walnuts and stir until well combined. Season with salt and pepper. Use a teaspoon to spoon the mixture evenly among the cannelloni tubes. Alternatively, spoon the ricotta mixture into a piping bag and pipe the mixture into the cannelloni tubes.

4

To assemble: Spoon half of the sauce over the base of the prepared dish. Arrange the cannelloni tubes, in a single layer, over the sauce. Spoon over the remaining sauce over the cannelloni tubes.

5

Bake: Cover loosely with foil and bake in oven for 40 minutes or until the cannelloni is tender.

To serve:
Sprinkle grated parmesan and some walnuts over the cannelloni

Orechiette With Grilled Vegetables, Feta and Roasted Garlic Pesto

Believe it or not, I don't just eat desserts and cakes. But I do seem to blog much more about desserts and cakes so I thought I should balance things out a bit. This is a pasta dish that is simple to throw together because the oven does most of the work. I served the pasta with Janet's soft breadsticks, which were so quick and easy to make (thanks, Janet!).

Making your own pesto is worth the time because the freshness of the basil comes through. Fortunately, Quikong started a herb garden for me. This way, we always have a fresh supply of basil, which we use quite often in our cooking. I've used walnuts instead of pinenuts in the pesto for a change, and I was pleased with the result.

I enjoyed this so much that I will submit it to Ruth at Once Upon a Feast, who started the weekly food blogging event, Presto Pasta Nights.

Orechiette With Grilled Vegetables, Feta and Roasted Garlic Pesto

Fresh Orechiette

Vegetables suitable for grilling/roasting (e.g. pumpkin, eggplant, zucchini, bell peppers)

Roasted garlic pesto (recipe below)

Feta Cheese, cubed

To serve:

Roasted balsamic red onion (recipe below)

Feta Cheese, crumbled

Walnuts, chopped

1

Brush/spray sliced vegetables with a little olive oil to prevent them from drying out. Grill or roast vegetables till they are tender.

2

When the vegetables are almost ready, cook the pasta until it is al dente.

3

To assemble: Firstly, toss the drained pasta with the feta and pesto. Secondly, add the vegetables and take care not to stir too much because the pumpkin might get mushy.

4

Serve pasta topped with the quartered balsamic red onion, chopped walnuts, extra crumbed feta cheese and a few basil leaves.

Roasted Garlic Pesto
(Serves 4)

2 cups fresh basil

¼ cup walnuts, lightly toasted

½ cup freshly grated parmesan

1 head of roasted garlic

Place all ingredients, except oil, in a mortar and pound it till it forms a smooth paste. You can use a food processor of course but be careful not to overprocess (the basil will get bruised). Slowly add the oil until it is well combined. This can be stored up to a week in the fridge. You can replace walnuts with toasted pine nuts and omit the garlic for a more traditional pesto.

Balsamic-Roasted Red Onions

From Donna Hay's "Off the shelf: Cooking from the pantry

4 red onions

Balsamic vinegar

Sugar

Olive oil

Place 4 halved red onions, cut side up, on a lined baking tray. Loosen the onion layers with your fingers. Sprinkle with balsamic vinegar so that it gets between the onion layers. Sprinkle with sugar (I used brown sugar) and a little olive oil. Cover and bake in a preheated oven at 160 degrees C for 30 minutes. Remove the cover and bake a further 20 minutes or until slightly caramelised & golden. (these are yummy as a pizza topping).