Hazelnut and Sun Dried Tomato Pesto

Here's an easy condiment that you can whip up in minutes when you have all of the ingredients on hand and will be such a welcome addition or finishing touch to so many dishes, you might just want to have a jar of it in the refrigerator at all times for adding that little pizzazz that lifts your dish from ordinary to extraordinary. Really!

Red, White and Blue Crostini

I came across the recipe as an addition to a grilled cheese over at "Kalamazoo Outdoor Gourmet" blog  and it was love at first bite. Since I live in the land of hazelnuts here Piemonte, and they just happen to be my all time favorite nut, it didn't take me long to whip this pesto up.  I am able to get soft and salty sun dried tomatoes at our Pinerolo market, straight from the producers in southern Italy. They are a delightful treat that I find more versatile than the ones in the oil. Naturally if you don't have access to hazelnuts, almonds or walnuts can step in with a different twist but tasty no less. If using the tomatoes in the oil, I would drain the oil and measure it for the oil that you would be using in the recipe and maybe use a bit less. 

Chunky version hazelnut tomato pesto

The first time I made this I blended the tomatoes with the oil and everything else but the nuts first to a rough stage before adding the hazelnuts so that I had larger pieces of nuts, which I found to be an unexpected crunch that I really appreciated. This last time  when I made it I chucked everything into the small hand blender's food processor attachment and blended it all up making a very smooth paste. Not sure which I prefer. It's a bit like smooth or crunchy peanut butter. Sometimes one is preferable and other times you just want the other. 

Ricotta and Hazelnut Tomato Pesto Farinata 

I have used it on top of a celery stick filled with a bit of mascarpone cheese, farinata (which is a chickpea pancake Ligurian specialty) that has had ricotta smeared on top and the pesto on top of that, crostini, with ricotta or other soft spreadable cheeses and as a great substitute on your favorite burger, meat or veggie or lifting an ordinary sandwich to new heights. The list is endless. I have yet use it on pasta cause I am usually too busy dunking my grissini in it. It is a perfect picnic addition as we found out one afternoon.

Picinic fare

When the weather isn't cooperating, all you need is to make a batch of this pesto and it'll feel like the sun is shining on your palate and what could be better than that?

The smooth pesto version 

I've slightly adapted the recipe and you should too to what ever you have on hand, but if you can find hazelnuts, or filberts, the domesticated American variety of hazelnuts, you will find them worth seeking out. Now get in the kitchen and mix up a batch!

Hazelnut and Sun Dried Tomato Pesto

Ingredients:
3/4 cup raw, whole hazelnuts, shelled
3 ounces sun-dried tomatoes, cut up
1 clove garlic, peeled and roughly chopped
1/2 teaspoon coarsely-ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
1 1/2 teaspoons light brown sugar
3/4 cup extra virgin olive oil

Optional: a squeeze of fresh lemon juice to brighten the flavors slightly, being carrel not to add too much so that it covers the subtle hazelnut flavor

Instructions:
Preheat a small skillet over medium-high heat. 
Add the hazelnuts.
Toast the nuts in the dry heavy skillet, tossing occasionally, until they start to pick up color and are fragrant, approximately 7 minutes. 
Remove from heat, allow to cool without picking up too much color and set aside.
Combine all the other ingredients in a food processor and process until relatively smooth. Add the reserved hazelnuts and process further until the hazelnuts are chopped, but the "pesto" maintains a chunky texture.
Cover and refrigerate for a few hours before use to give the oil time to rehydrate the tomatoes. 
Stir before use. 
Will keep, refrigerated, for well more than a week. 

Chunky style

Tomato Jam or Marmellata di Pomodori

Recently I made a couple of batches of Tomato jam or what I like to call Marmellata di Pomodori with the various tomatoes I had languishing around waiting to be put to good use. I started making this last year when my interest was piqued by a Splendid Table podcast about a man that hosted a party that he called Pomodorata, in which all the courses of the meal included tomatoes. You can hear that episode here. If you are not familiar with NPR’s “The Splendid Table” radio show, then I highly recommend you take the time to discover it. The show always has plenty of interesting topics, loads of recipes and ideas with the indomitable Lyn Rossetto Kasper moderating and is an incredible source of information and inspiration. I download the podcasts and enjoy listening to them whilst doing the dishes, cleaning rooms or weeding stubborn garden patches. Several people asked me to post a recipe and so I am obliging, although I would say that this a good outline of a recipe, but it can be adjusted to your taste and the flavor fulness of the tomatoes. Do, however, make sure to try this with some of the great tasting tomatoes on the market before they disappear for another year!

Cuore di bui and roma Italian tomato varieties

Anyway, it seems to me that this jam is not unlike an adult version of ketchup, in that it is versatile enough to be used in a number of ways. I love that it is sweet and spicy and adds a flavor punch that frankly ketchup never did for me. I’ve always chosen brown mustard over ketchup whenever that debate arises. This gorgeous rosey red jam is a great accompaniment to roast meats or vegetables, jazzes up sandwiches, great with soft cheeses, like goat, fresh ricotta or the classic American standby, cottage cheese or stirred into dips for veggies and chips.  I think you’ll find a lot of places that a little dab will do it for adding some zest to your lunch time or aperitivo offerings. It has been a popular condiment that disappears quickly. That is why I made sure to make a couple of batches. Hopefully you’ll still find some tomatoes in your patch or at your farmers market to make the effort worth is. They say you can also use a good quality canned tomato as well if you missed the abundance of tomatoes this season.

This recipe is a blended and tweaked version of Lynn Rossetto Kasper’s Sweet and Piquant Tomato Jam and Food in Jars Honey-Sweetened Tomato Jam. I have made it slightly different every time I make it as it depends on what I have on hand and how the spirit moves me. I give you the option of honey or sugar to sweeten the jam, depending on your preference. Just make sure to taste the jam at the end of the cooking time and adjust the salt or lemon juice to make sure the flavor pops out. I cut back on the sugar and honey and decided that it really does need that amount to make the flavors sing, so don’t skimp. I also crushed the tomatoes one time and chopped them into chunks another time. I found if I cut them into chunks them, that I needed to blend the jam a bit at the end as the tomatoes didn’t really break down enough for my taste. I think a combination of crushing through squeezing them in my hand and some diced up would be a good balance. I found that my deep sided saute pan did a good job of cooking down a bit faster than using my usual large deep jam pan. I found that when cooking the jam down till the mix was thick and had lost most of the water, had large bubbles and a deep shiny luscious red color, it was just about right.  I then would taste the mix and add the lemon and adjust any of the seasoning to get it where I thought it needed to be. It will vary depending on the flavor of your tomatoes and how juicy or not they are as to how long the process takes, but I can assure you, you will be rewarded with a beguiling treat.

Jam at the finish line

Tomato Jam / Marmellata di Pomodori

Makes about 5-7 half pints

Ingredients:

2kg (around 4½ pounds) mix of flavorful tomatoes, washed and cored

I used a mix of what I had pachino, a couple of cuore di bue and a few grape tomatoes for one batch and another with roma variety instead of the cuore di bue

380-400g (2 c) sugar or 850g (2½c) honey, I used chestnut because it is what I had on hand

2-4 long red hot peppers fresh because that is what I had on hand, chopped into medium pieces

or 1-2 tsp hot chili pepper flakes

4 whole allspice, because that is what I had on hand

1 tsp ground allspice

4 whole cloves

½ tsp cloves

fresh ginger optional, but  if you want a little more zip, maybe in place of the chili flakes

1 tsp or so  salt or to taste

2 lemons their zest and juice or limes if you are fortunate to have them

Method:

Crush and chop your tomatoes up into a large deep sided skillet or saucepan. I don’t peel or seed them.

Cover with a lid and bring the mix to a rolling boil.

Lower the heat and let the mixture cook. Remove the lid after a short while so the water evaporates and the sauce begins to thicken.

Mix in the sweetener of choice, pepper pieces or flakes, spices, the zest of the citrus and a bit of salt, (you can always add more later if you feel it needs it)

Reserve the lemon juice to add just at the end.

Continue cooking on a lower heat, stirring frequently and make sure that the mixture doesn’t stick to the bottom and burn.

Once the liquid has evaporated and the mixture has sufficiently thickened you should notice that the bubbles are rather large than when it first starts to boil. The color will be a deep red and shiny.

Taste and add the lemon juice a little at a time, although it will most like need all of the juice. Stir well, taste and adjust seasoning as needed. Once cool it may need adjusting. It will keep for a couple of weeks in the refrigerator and will freezes as well.

I however treated it as a jam and pour it into hot sterilized jars, covered them with lids and sealed  them in a water bath for 15 minutes. I have not had any problems with them keeping for months like jam, but with tomatoes, you always need to be careful. You would be wise to check the jars periodically to make sure the lids are still sealed and refrigerate any that you might not be sure if they are properly sealed. If you find that they have not been well sealed or have a funny smell or color, do not use them. I have not had any problems at all, but just want to make sure that you do not take any chances especially if you are not a seasoned canner. There should be no problem with freezing them or using it up right away as I am sure you will find many ways of enjoying it, probably with friends.  

Pasta al Melanzane e Pomodori

Girandole

If you live in the northern hemisphere, you are probably up to your ears in tomatoes, eggplant, and zucchini at the moment. I know we are here in northern Italy. If you are looking for a fast and easy way to use up some of these abundant veggies, I have an easy pasta option for you.  This particular pasta dish hails from the Puglia region, in the south of Italy where these veggies are even more abundant than here. My friend, Silvana, shared this recipe with me quite a long time ago when we were over one night for dinner. I have made it quite a few times with a variety of pasta, although the classic version is with hand made cavatelli, which I have made, but didn't get a photo of it with this particular recipe.

my hand made cavatelli

I have photographed it a few times thinking I would get around to writing it up, so you will see a few variations of pasta here in the photos. Hope you enjoy it. I hope to get a eggplant and zucchini lasagna recipe up soon as well, whilst we are still in the thick of the season. 

with cellentani pasta

Dicing your eggplant

Pasta al Melanzane e Pomodori

Eggplant/Aubergine and fresh Tomato Pasta

Serves 6

Ingredients

2 T or more as needed olive oil

2 garlic cloves, large or more if desired, small dice

1 large aubergine, (500g-1 1/2 #) medium diced, peel your eggplant and reserve the skin for topping

8-10 Tomatos, (1 kg / 2-2 1/2 # roma style, regular or cherry,  diced 

or a mix of roma and regular makes a good sauce

6 large basil leaves, fresh, maybe 1/4 cup cut up, more if you like

600g/1# or so pasta of choice, cavatelli, cellantani, Girandole, rigatoni, penne, or any big body type pasta

Method

Peel your eggplant in strips and reserve the peel to fry for a garnish on top.

Dice aubergine and tomatos into a medium dice.

Finely dice garlic and set aside.

Heat 2 T oil up in a large, heavy bottomed pan with deep sides or a non stick pan if you like.

When the oil is hot, add your garlic and cook just until the oil is aromatic making sure the garlic doesn't pick up any color.

Add your eggplant and shake or stir to coat the pieces with oil and cook till just starting to soften, lifting the eggplant or shaking your pan to keep it  from sticking.

Remove the eggplant into a bowl and set aside. I like the eggplant to retain its body and that is why I pull it out at this point and set it aside while the tomatoes cook. *If you don't mind or prefer your eggplant a tad more mushy, then just add the tomatoes in and cook them all together. Your preference.*

Add your tomatos to the pan and cook them till the tomatoes break down and create a luscious thick sauce, maybe 15 minutes or so. You might need to add some liquid, (water or stock) if your tomatoes are more meaty than juicy.

Add fresh basil and the reserved cooked aubergine and simmer a few more minutes.

Season with salt and pepper. 

Heat some additional frying oil in an small pan that you can quickly deep fry your eggplant peels that have been cut into narrow strips. Drain on paper towels and sprinkle a little salt on top. Add to the top of each serving or your bowl of pasta as you serve for a bit of a wow factor. Optional of course. 

Tomatos with basil, cooked eggplant in bowl and fried eggplant peels

Sauce is great used immediately with your favorite cooked, hearty pasta or sits well overnight and the flavor just improves. The flavor of your sauce is almost completely determined by the quality and flavor of your tomatoes. 

Don't worry if you think this is a large portion of pasta and sauce. This makes a wonderful baked pasta dish the second day, by adding some fresh grated parmesan or pecorino cheese and turned into an oiled baking dish and baked till bubbly, adding a bit of water it if seems too dry. 

This is a flavorful pasta, that is sure to please.