Fresh Herbs.

I have been enjoying my new house and indulging in a little bit of cooking. It has taken some adjusting because I have my first gas stove and oven. When I first started my oven I quickly realized that there is no temperature gauge. I bought a temp. meter and since have had to work with some trial and error. Equally as difficult has been learning how to cook on an open flame. My recent cooking endeavor was fresh pesto with cooked tomatoes from the OKC Farmers market.

My recipes are a bit difficult to convey because I tend to introduce ingredients on a tasting basis but I'll attempt to give a recipe....

First, a bunch of basil, about 1/4 cup of pine nuts, clove of garlic. Mix these ingredients in the food processor until mixed into a paste. Pour in olive oil streaming while the mixture continues to spin. Then, add about enough parmesan cheese to cover the top of your mixture in the food processor. Mix again until smooth.

Now like I said I tend to do a lot of taste testing before becoming content with my sauce. I added more pine nuts, more olive oil, AND more parmesan before finishing.

Cook your tomatoes in olive oil face down on the stove in a non-stick pan. As they begin to get tender I would suggest smashing them with your cooking utensil of choice so that the juice mixes with the olive oil. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Put your cooked noodles on top of the tomatoes and then pour over the pesto mixture. Stir the ingredients together until the pesto evenly coats the pasta.

And finally, cover your pasta with parmesan and a pinch full of pine nuts.

I would suggest enjoying this with a nice glass of wine but it has been so hot in Oklahoma about the only thing I can stand is a jug of water!