Presto Pesto

quick dinner for long summer night

This week we’re keeping it light and breezy while I’m off eating my way through Nashville. I’m visiting one of my best friends, Alex, for the first time since she left LA before the pandemic. Somehow the years slipped by and now I’m long overdue for a trip to her new town. Alex and I go way back to our days working together at the grocery store. Her hands are the ones holding the strawberry shortcake in our first book and the Cherry Jindra drink in Fast as Fuck is named after her and her husband. Now that she’s out in Nashville I can’t get her to model for the new books, but I can get her to show me around the city and where to eat. So if you have any suggestions for places I must try, drop them in the comments below otherwise I’m just going to let my nose lead me. I’ll report back with whatever I find, I promise. Now back to the kitchen.

the only way to live is with pesto in the freezer

This simple summer dinner always hits the spot. I made this, posted it on my IG, and got so many DMs about how delicious it looked. I’m not gonna gatekeep, so here it is. Because of the flexibility of the herbs, chances are you’ll have most of this stuff on hand any night of the week during these warm months. Plus, prepping this dinner will take you as long as it takes to cook the pasta so you’ll have a fancy looking entrée on the table in less than 30 minutes. Want to be even lazier? Use a store-bought pesto or basil you’ve thrown into the freezer and just add some fresh chopped herbs at the end to mix up the flavors. I won’t tell and neither should you.

Every Herb Pesto with Fresh Tomatoes

Makes enough for 4 servings

2 cups chopped fresh herbs, like basil, dill, cilantro, parsley, and/or green onions

3 cloves of garlic, chopped

1/3 cup slivered or sliced almonds

2 tablespoons lemon juice

½ teaspoon salt

¼ cup olive oil

1 pound dried pasta like penne, cooked according to the package directions

4 cups chopped fresh tomatoes

2 tablespoons white balsamic vinegar or regular

2 tablespoons nutritional yeast

1 tablespoons rice vinegar

½ teaspoon sumac, optional

Salt and pepper to taste

Fill a large pot with water and set it over a high heat to come to a simmer to cook the pasta. While the pasta is cooking- just follow the directions on the box- make the pesto.

Grab a food processor or blender and throw in the herbs, garlic, almonds, lemon juice, and salt. Putting the herbs down at the bottom with the heavier stuff on top helps everything get nice and chopped up. There’s a method to the madness. Once everything is minced in the food processor, drizzle in the oil until a paste forms. If it’s still not going, add a tablespoon or two of water until you’ve got a good pesto formed.

Once the pesto is done, set it aside. Grab a large bowl and throw in the tomatoes, balsamic vinegar, nutritional yeast, and rice vinegar with a pinch of salt and pepper. Before you drain the pasta, reserve ½ cup of the pasta water. This liquid is great for thinning out sauces without watering them down thanks to all the starch the pasta releases while it boils. After the pasta has drained, toss it in the big bowl with the tomatoes and mix everything up. Add the pesto and stir until everything is coated in the sauce. If the pesto is clumping together or isn’t coating the noodles, add some of the pasta water, a little at a time. Sprinkle over the sumac, if using, and taste. Add more of whatever you think it needs.

Serve warm or at room temperature with some chopped fresh herbs on top and some grated vegan parmesan if that’s your thing.

Every Herb Pesto With Fresh Tomatoes

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Thanks for joining us here in The Broiler Room. Next week, we’ve got another delicious travel meal in case you’ve got any air travel in your summer plans. See you then!