Springtime yields from the Toronto farmers' market.
Emma Alter
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Last week I decided to make my foray to the farmers' market and just cook whatever I found there. I did the same thing this week with wonderful results. It's still very early in Ontario to be buying local produce. We found mostly winter vegetables but came across one welcome local spring item--garlic. This garlic isn't like the head of garlic you usually see, it looks like a green onion with a grassy top. We also bought some beautiful greenhouse organic basil and some spring mix baby greens.
As for winter vegetables we got some Jerusalem artichokes, some celeriac, some broccoli and some beets. Heading home from the market my daughter and I were wondering what to make when I suggested that I sautee the garlic and make a pasta sauce of garlic and olive oil. She looked at me in astonishment and said "fresh garlic, fresh basil... pesto" in the mock valley girl voice she uses whenever I have said something incredibly stupid. So pesto it was.
The smell of the garlic from the market was quite pungent and it filled the entire house. The taste, however, was very delicate and quite delicious. The basil was also tender and delicate, not like the sturdy mid-summer basil I'm used to. I used some fruity extra virgin olive oil from Italy and some really good Parmesan cheese. The resulting pesto had a wonderful mild taste and the three of us sat quietly enjoying our first real taste of spring.
I've made pesto so many times, I never look at a cookbook anymore. I just tossed this together, and you can, too. The amounts are approximate, so you should feel free to experiment a little bit. If you are going to have this over pasta as we did, choose something like fusilli or rotini which holds the sauce better than spaghetti or linguine. You can also use this over steamed vegetables, grilled chicken, or fish or as a spread on some crusty bread.
Garlic and Basil Pesto
4 bulbs of garlic, white and light green part only, or 3 cloves of garlic
1 cup basil, torn
1/4 cup of extra virgin olive oil, or more if needed
1 tbsp pine nuts
1/4 cup Parmesan cheese, or more if needed
1 tbsp butter
salt and pepper to taste
3 cups cooked fusilli (if using)
1. In a food processor, place garlic, basil and pine nuts and pour in olive oil. Pulse until it is the consistency you want. Add more olive oil if it is too dry.
2. If you are using it for pasta, but the garlic mixture into a bowl large enough to hold the cooked pasta. Stir in the butter and Parmesan cheese. Before draining your pasta, ladle a bit of cooking water into the garlic mixture and stir. Use just enough water to make a light sauce. Drain pasta and add to the garlic, stirring well to cover the pasta. Add extra cheese if needed and salt and pepper to taste.
Serves 3
Difficulty Level: Easy
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