the travelling basil.

My goal this summer was to grow some fresh herbs from seed. Being that I love to cook, I know the huge difference it makes when you use fresh herbs versus dried, so I figured I'd give it a shot. How hard could it really be! I've worked in a greenhouse for at least a third of my life, so I must have picked up something along the way. My husband and I made the trip to our local Canadian Tire to pick up some supplies and (after a long debate at the CT about the cost effectiveness of growing versus buying fresh herbs) we were on our way. What are husbands for if not to give you grief when you spend too much money :)
Living in an apartment in downtown Montreal, my little seedlings definitely had some barriers stunting their growth. Not only do we have a very limited outdoor space, but what we have is completely surrounded by three other 12 story buildings. The 10 minutes of total sunshine they received each day may have been the clincher, so yes Tom...you told me so :)
As we like to travel home to the Niagara Region quite frequently, I had no choice but to bring my little seedlings along with me, as sad as they were. It had been over a month and they had barely grown more than an inch or two. There is a reason why Niagara is known as the Green Belt. All it took was a week of Niagara sun and fresh air and my basil were golden! They grew more in the one week we were in Niagara than they had for a whole month in Montreal.
And so the story continues. Every time Joe and I decided to drive home for the weekend, all my basil was loaded into a cardboard box and transported back and forth with us. It became the running joke when we'd pull up to the house after an 8 hour drive and haul a big box of fresh basil out of the back seat! But boy did I end up with a ton of healthy, hearty fresh basil.
As much as I've tried to use my basil all summer long...putting it in salads, tossing some leaves in our pasta, shredding some on top of pizza...I just couldn't use all that I had grown. What better opportunity to make pesto! Pesto works with just about everything. We toss it in our spaghetti, spread it on a pizza crust to make white pizza, you can add it to your eggs...the possibilities are endless!


Basil Pesto

- (2) cups of fresh basil leaves
- (1/4) cup of toasted pine nuts
- (2) cloves of garlic, roughly chopped
- (1/2) cup of freshly grated parmasan cheese or romano cheese
- (1/4) cup of extra virgin olive oil

Lightly toast pine nuts in a frying pan on the stove or in the oven. Make sure to keep an eye on them frequently as they tend to burn quickly (and are really expensive!!!) Set them aside and allow them to cool.

Thoroughly wash and dry all your basil leaves and measure out roughly 2 cups.

If you have a large, quality food processor, you can add all the basil in at once, but if you're working with a smaller food processor or a mini chopper, you will most likely have to do this in batches. In traditional Italian methods you would be chopping everything by hand, but who's got the patience for that :)
I was using a mini chopper, and so I did everything in small batches, adding a little extra basil each time. The goal is to add all the basil, the pine nuts and the garlic into a food processor and pulse until you achieve the desired consistency. You want to end up with a finely chopped paste, but not too finely chopped, pesto should still have some texture to it. Once you have finished processing the pesto, scoop the paste into a seperate bowl.

Finely grate about 1/2 of a cup of fresh parmasan cheese.

Stir both the parmasan cheese and the olive oil into the pesto. You don't want the pesto to be too dry or too oily, so add in the oil a little bit at a time until it becomes moist but not runny.

Now your pesto is ready to enjoy! In a sealed container, you can keep the pesto in the fridge for at least a week, but if you're not going to use it all right away, you're better off to freeze it. I actually took small pieces of Glad Press and Seal (cellophane or wax paper will work too) and made individual packets with about a tablespoon or so in each. I twisted the packets up tightly and threw them all in a ziploc bag together. You can store the bag in the freezer for months, and everytime you want to add a little pesto to your pasta, pizza, or favourite dish...presto...pesto!!!

friday night pizza.

Friday night pizza has been a tradition in my parent's house for as long as I can remember. Whether we ordered in, popped in a Delissio, or made those tasty little english muffin pizzas reminiscent of my childhood, if it was Friday night...we were eating pizza. While the pizza toppings and beverage of choice have slowly evolved over the years, the ritual continues, and Joe and I have stayed true to this tradition since we've been married.

Pizza is one of those dishes where the sky really is the limit. If you've got a good base, fresh ingredients, and of course some nice cheese, you're golden. I must admit that I often take the easy route and use store-bought crusts. They are super easy to use and taste amazing. For this pizza, I used President's Choice Blue Menu Multigrain Thin pizza crust and it turned out fabulous. It is a slightly smaller crust, so if you're cooking for more than 2 people, I'd suggest making a couple pizzas.

This recipe is perfect for a romantic night in served with a glass of wine, or even cut into smaller wedges and served as an appetizer.



Caramelized Onion, Proscuitto and Goat Cheese Pizza

- (1) pizza crust or extra-large pita
- (1) tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
- (1) head of roasted garlic (see instructions below)
- (1) tsp. dried basil or a handful of fresh basil
- (1) caramelized onion *
- (6-8) slices of proscuitto
~ (8 oz.) goat cheese, or 1/2 of a 454g tube
- (1/2) cup of shredded mozzarella

The first step to making this pizza is to roast the head of garlic. It is a lot easier working with the garlic when it's not straight out of the oven and piping hot, so this can even be done a couple hours in advance. Some recipes will suggest wrapping the garlic in tin foil or drizzling with olive oil, but I have found that simply popping the head of garlic into the oven works the best. Preheat your oven to 375 degrees F, and once it comes to temperature, place the head of garlic directly on the rack. Bake for 45 minutes to an hour, making sure that the garlic cloves are soft to the touch when done. Allow to cool and cut the woody end off the head of garlic with a sharp knife. At this point you'll be able to squeeze the one end of the head of garlic and the roasted cloves will slide right out.

 
* The next step is to caramelize the onions. To caramelize onions is really just to bring out their natural sugars by heating them. While you don't really need to add anything to the onions to caramelize them, adding the vinegar and brown sugar add a nice colour and sweetness to the onions which contrasts nicely with the goat cheese and proscuitto. 

Caramelized Onions

- (1) tbsp. butter or margarine

- (1) large onion or (2) small onions, sliced into rings

- (1) tbsp. balsamic vinegar

- (1) tsp. brown sugar

Heat butter in frying fan over medium to low heat. Slice onions into thin rings and add to butter. Saute slowly stirring often and making sure not to blacken the edges. Add balsamic vinegar and brown sugar to onions and stir. Continue to saute on low until onions completely soften and become a nice golden brown colour.

Finally, constructing the pizza. Place pizza crust on on a pizza tray. Brush lightly with extra virgin olive oil. Squeeze the roasted garlic cloves onto the crust and spread evenly over the entire pizza. Season with basil. If using fresh basil, roughly chop and sprinkle over the crust. Spread on caramelized onions.

Top with sliced proscuitto. Note that the proscuitto used on this pizza was home cured and slighly thicker than store-bought proscuitto.

 Crumble goat cheese on top and sprinkle with mozzarella.

Place pizza in an oven preheated to 375 degrees F. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, checking on the pizza closer to the end as baking times will vary depending on the oven. Let the pizza rest for a couple minutes, then slice and serve.

Buon Appetito!


Cutting Back?
Another healthy option when making your own pizza is to use an extra-large whole-wheat pita for the crust. They are nice and thin and crispy and a few less carbohydrates than a regular pizza crust. Omitting the proscuitto and mozzarella will also cut out a lot of fat with out sacrificing too much flavour. This is a great idea if you're catering to vegetarians as well.