First Pesto of the Season

Necessity, is without a doubt, the mother of invention. Hunger amps necessity Especially at lunchtime. go downstairs and make some fresh pasta. It’s not so crazy: flour, eggs, knead, stretch the pasta, cut it, done. Pasta for two: come on, no biggie. I run over to the orto and harvest the first of our basil. So, if you make pesto really fast, is it Presto Pesto? Well, today it would Presto Pistachio Pesto.

 
Necessity, is without a doubt,  the mother of invention. Hunger amps necessity Especially at lunchtime.

So, the story goes like this. It’s about noon when I feel the first hunger rumble. I need to be fed regularly, it’s just the way I’m wired.  I’ve been on a grocery store strike, because I hate going to the grocery story. But the cupboard is getting bare so I’m going to have to knuckle down very soon. I tell Jeff we have no pasta for lunch. He starts to whimper.
It just breaks my heart when he whimpers like that.

I go downstairs and make some fresh pasta. It’s not so crazy: flour, eggs, knead, stretch  the pasta, cut it, done. Pasta for two: come on, no biggie.

The pasta water goes on the stove to boil, I run over to the orto and harvest the first of our basil. Poor basil, it’s had a hard season, too cold, too wet. It never had a chance to grow and now it’s flowering. Completely bypassed adolescence and went right into maturity. I harvest 10 or 12 nice size leaves, and a big chunk of rucola (arugula).  The rucola has gone berserk; you have to hack it off in chunks.

By the time I get back to the kitchen, the water is nearly boiling.  I’m thinking a little pesto would taste nice, and I go to the pine nut jar…and it’s empty. Grrr….. But, what good luck, there are some shelled pistachios! Into the blender: basil, garlic, olive oil, pinch of salt, hunk of cheese and some nuts.

The pasta gets cooked in about 90 seconds, it all gets tossed together with a little chopped tomato and there you have it, a very fresh lunch. Total time to make: 30 minutes. 

So, if you make pesto really fast, is it Presto Pesto? Well, then it would be Presto Pistachio Pesto. Say that 5 times fast…backwards!