Pesto

Kale-Pistachio Pesto

{original recipe from cooking stoned}

Do you ever make your own pesto? I grew up with a traditional Genovese style pesto that my mom would make with basil from her garden. It was not until recently that I began to experiment with other greens in pesto. If you are not yet totally over all of the kale hype, this is a brilliant use for kale. If you do not have pistachios on hand, I am pretty sure almonds or even pine nuts could make an apt substitute.

This pesto can be used in many ways. This was excellent with pasta and I can imagine this would make a great base for a white pizza or a fine addition to a grilled cheese sandwich. I also served a dollop of this with steamed asparagus, which made for a great pairing. How would you use this pesto?

ingredients:
3 large kale leaves, deveined
1/2 cup shelled pistachios, unsalted
3 cloves garlic
1/4 extra virgin olive oil
1 tsp sea salt

1. rip the kale into smallish pieces

2. peel the garlic cloves

3. add all ingredients into a food processor and pulse until smooth. 

Road Trip Eats: Maine Edition

Fiddlehead Ferns

We just took a long weekend trip to Maine, where the scenery was fantastic and the eating even better. We stuffed ourselves silly on lobster rolls, vowing on departure to not sample one again for a very, very long time. When not eating lobster rolls, we learned of another Maine delicacy -- fiddleheads. 

An early spring delicacy in Maine, fiddleheads are the coiled fronds of the ostrich fern. Fiddleheads bear a likeness to other familiar greens, like asparagus, however these must be boiled or steamed before sauteeing, baking or using in a stir fry. If you ever plan to go foraging for fiddleheads, you should be confident in your ability to discern the difference between the ostrich fiddlehead and other fern fiddleheads, as not all ferns are edible.

We served these alongside roasted potatoes and chicken enchiladas. This made for a very special family style meal on our last night in McFarland's Cove. Maine, I vow to return some day.

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Photo credits: Andrei Sinioukov

Lately Sipping On...

Grapefruit Juice

What's your summer time drink of choice? Lately, we have been sipping on grapefruit juice. It's refreshing straight up. But the possibilities are endless depending on your tonic of choice. The other night we mixed up a grapefruit cocktail with vodka, a sprig of rosemary and a splash of soda water. Its so good, its dangerous. And a quick tour around the internet yielded some might fine inspiration - hoping to try these others soon!

Tequila: It turns out the Margarita is not Mexico's most popular drink -- Check out this recipe for the Paloma from the Bon Appetit Test Kitchen.

Champagne: A grapefruit twist on the classic morning drink -- from Apartment Therapy's Kitchn

Gin: this Italian greyhound from familystyle food blog may just become my go to summertime drink