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Monday, August 22, 2011

Tomato Almond Pesto

Got tomatoes?  I've got you covered.

We have a tree-filled, shady backyard which makes it almost impossible to have a garden. A couple of  containers of basil is about all this mama's patio can handle with the few hours of sunlight it receives. Thank goodness for friends and their donations of tomatoes from their abundant sun-filled gardens!



Tomato Almond Pesto
((Printable Recipe))

6 plum tomatoes, quartered
3/4 cup slivered almonds
1/2 cup freshly grated parmesan
1/4 to 1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
1 large handful basil, washed
3 cloves garlic
generous pinch of sea salt
pinch of crushed red pepper flakes (optional)
1 pound whole wheat linguine, cooked, drained (reserving a little of the cooking liquid)

Toast the almonds in a little bit of olive oil and cool.  (I've also skipped this step and used the almonds raw.  This works fine too.)  Place them in a food processor and pulse until the size of orzo pasta.  Place the almonds in a bowl and set aside.

Place the basil, garlic, salt and crushed red pepper in the food processor.  Give it a quick blend.  Add the almonds, quartered tomatoes and cheese.  Turn on the food processor and add the olive oil in a steady stream.  Season with cracked pepper and adjust salt to taste.

Toss with the linguine and thin with a little bit of the reserved pasta water, if needed.


Enjoy!

Link to: Skip to my Lou, Delightfully Dowling, Jam Hands, Everyday Mom's Meals, Midnight Maniac, This Chick Cooks, Fave Diets

10 comments:

  1. We love pasta. I'm definitely going to have to try this. Thanks for sharing on Church Supper!

    Everyday Mom's Meals

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  2. All printed out and ready for the answer to "what's for supper?" YUM!! Thanks!

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  3. Oh, my does this sound delish, Mama J! I made basil pesto last week... guess I'm officially on a pesto kick! (not complain')

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  4. I was wondering if you think you could freeze this for winter use? I just made a ton of pesto and froze it but would love to do some like this for a different flavor!

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  5. That's a great question Kacee. I made three jars and was planning on freezing one of them but it was so good we ate all of it in a week. :) I think it will freeze fine. It is a thinner pesto (because of all the water in the tomatoes) than a traditional pesto. So it might getter a litte thinner once it is frozen and then thawed- but I think it will be fine. I have frozen my arugula pesto and that defrosted beautifully. Here' a link to that recipe... http://alittlebitcrunchyalittlebitrock.blogspot.com/2011/07/arugula-pesto-with-almonds.html

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  6. That pesto looks so unique and delicious. What wonderful friends to give you all those tomatoes :)

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  7. Looks beautiful!!!! Must taste great too:)

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  8. Thank you for answering! I am going to give it a try.

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  9. Yum! What a great take on traditional green pestos. Thanks for posting!

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  10. Happy Monday! I wanted to thank you for sharing this delicious recipe at Recipe Sharing Monday. The new party is now up and I'd love for you to link up again :)

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