Roasted Red Pepper & Chipotle Pesto

When I came across Aida Mollenkamp's recipe for a roasted red pepper pesto, I was intrigued. But as I read through it, I was disappointed by the ingredients.

Don't get me wrong, I love goat cheese. It's my favorite cheese. But the rest of the ingredients lacked oomph. I have a serious disdain for red pepper flakes.

They are fine on pizza, if you're into that. But for my sauce, I wanted a good spice kick blended throughout and not little flakes getting stuck in my teeth. At first I considered adding sriracha, but thought it might be a bit too extreme. I settled on chipotle peppers. And that's when this became a Mexican dish.

I figured chipotle and my beloved goat cheese, both being strong flavors, would compete for attention, but chipotle and queso fresco pair beautifully together. And it crumbles so nicely. Great on refried beans, delicious on chipotle & roasted pepper spaghetti. And since we were already going the Latino route, why not go all the way and use cilantro instead of thyme?

What came out was nothing like what Aida started with. It was so much better. Even without nuts.

The next morning, one of the taste testers mixed this dish with the citrus quinoa, wrapped it in flat bread and called it breakfast. He then tweeted a picture. Boys. They'll eat anything!

I think this sauce might be equally as good as a soup. That's an idea for next time.

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Roasted Red Pepper & Chipotle Pesto

by Paulette Fontanez October-10-2012

Adapted from Roasted Pepper Pesto

Ingredients

• 1 pound spaghetti
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1/2 yellow onion, halved and thinly sliced
• 3 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
• 1/4 cup tomato paste
• 8 roasted red peppers (1 16-ounce jar), chopped
• 1 chipotle pepper in sauce
• 2 tablespoons chipotle sauce
• 2 teaspoons sugar
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 6 ounces queso fresco (Mexican white cheese), crumbled
• 2 tablespoons fresh cilantro, chopped

Instructions

1. Cook the pasta according to the directions. Reserve 1 1/2 cups of the past water then drain the pasta.2. While pasta is cooking, heat the olive oil until shimmering. Add the onion and cook until just as it begins to take on color, about 5 minutes over medium heat. Add the garlic for the last 30 seconds. 3. Add the tomato paste, both types of peppers (roasted and chipotle), chipotle sauce, and sugar (this balances the sourness from the tomato paste). Cook until thickened.4. Transfer the sauce to a blender and process until smooth. Return to the pan with the drained pasta and salt, and stir to combine. Add 1 cup of the pasta water and cook over medium heat until the sauce clings to the noodles. Add more water as needed to thin the sauce. 5. Serve topped with crumbled cheese and chopped cilantro.

Details

Prep time: 15 mins Cook time: 15 mins Total time: 30 mins Yield: 6-8 servings

Balsamic Pesto Pizza at Rosti Tuscan Kitchen

A few weeks ago a few bloggers picked my pizza as the upcoming Rosti Tuscan Kitchen Pizza of the Week. And that week was this past week!

The Pizza of the Week is displayed on their Specials board, which means that everyone walking in the doors saw it up on their wall—as well as a shout-out to this here blog. So if you've found yourself here by way of Rosti's chalkboard, ¡hola!

Rosti has two locations, so I had to try it at both (well, at least the toppings, since I hadn't asked for a gluten-free version). The pizza that was served was, of course, different than what I created. But that's the great thing about food: ingredient lists are guidelines. My original pizza was very cheesy. The pie at the Encino location came with extra caramelized onions while the one at the Santa Monica restaurant had far fewer.

Original + Encino Pizza + Santa Monica Pizza

Everyone who tried it seemed to really enjoy it (or, at least, that's what they told me). It paired really well with the Coppola Diamond Zinfandel (that we ordered by the bottle—twice). We happened into the Encino location on Wednesday, when wine is half-price by the bottle. Lucky us!

The recipe is as follows, sans quantities so you can tweak to your taste buds (and also because I didn't measure them when making it). It's good, I promise! And 11 food bloggers can't be wrong.

Balsamic Pesto Pizza

Pizza dough, rolled to a 10-inch disc
Pesto*
Caramelized onions
Honey balsamic dressing*
Sun-dried tomatoes
Pancetta, crumbled
Balsamic vinegar
Mozzarella, shredded
Italian breadcrumbs

1. Pre-heat the oven to 400 degrees. Roll the dough out over a floured surface.

2. Soak the caramelized onions in the honey balsamic dressing.

3. Top the dough with a generous helping of pesto. Add the onions and the dressing marinade, along with the tomatoes, pancetta, and balsamic vinegar. Add a generous amount of shredded mozzarella, then top with a handful of bread crumbs.

4. Bake in a 400 degree oven for 10-15 minutes. Serve piping hot, being careful not to burn your mouth.

* Rosti's proprietary ingredients

I suppose you could use a pre-made crust, though recipes for making dough abound all over the internets. The pesto and honey balsamic dressing recipes are also up for interpretation since they are Rosti's proprietary creations, but those recipes are also available everywhere, even here.

Rosti's contest is ongoing. You too can win bragging rights AND free pizza for a year. Go to their Facebook page for details.

Pesto-licious

Who said pesto has to be made a with basil, pine nuts, parmesan and olive oil? All right, so a "true" pesto follows somewhat along those guidelines. This is not one of those.

I've found that every time I buy a bag of greens from the supermarket, I hang on to it a little longer than is worth serving. Instead of throwing it out, I process it together with a few pantry staples and voila: something kind of like pesto! Pat it around a boneless chicken breast and voila: lunch!

Mmm, chicken.

Easy Peasy Pseudo Pesto
1 bag baby romaine lettuce (a bag of spinach, arugula, or any dark leafy greens should work, including the usual basil)
1 small onion
1 clove garlic (or use two, I'm just sensitive to the taste, so I try not to over-garlic anything)
1 teaspoon of lemon juice
1 small handful of almonds (about 1/3 a cup or so)
1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 to 1/2 cup of cheese (I've gotten good results from lots of different cheeses, from Parmesan to semi-soft goat cheese--I've also left it out completely)
Salt & pepper to taste

1. Throw everything in the food processor and blend on high. Stop after a bit, scrape down the sides, then start up again on low, drizzling the olive oil in as you go.

2. Stop when you get to the consistency of not-quite-yet-mushy-baby food. It should be slightly chunky (like the picture above).

3. Add it to your favorite dish: in pasta, crusted on chicken or fish, as a dip for crackers. Possibilities are endless.

Yields about 1.5 to 2 cups.