It’s that time of year when I crave comfort food. For my money, nothing beats a hot steaming bowl of pasta. Seriously, I could eat it until I exploded……which if I don’t lay off will happen……..but, when it’s cold and ugly out (everyday lately) I want pasta!!!Continue reading “Quick Pasta Carbonara”
How many snacky, trail mixy, dried fruit and nut mixes are there?………hundreds, thousands……perhaps, I exaggerate, but there are plenty of them. The one thing they all seem to have in common……….raisins. I really do not like raisins. I am not sure why, but I just don’t.
Sorry California Raisins……..but I’m sure, you heard it through the grapevine that you are not my favorite thing. I dumped you for other dries fruits. I love, love, love dried cranberries. I will eat them on anything. I have the same feeling about dried pineapple, those sweet, chewy, nuggets……..hmmm.
Tim and I look at all those mixes at the store, but have a hard time choosing because of my raisin aversion. So, we usually don’t buy them, or if we do, I end up picking out the raisins….what a pain!
You can’t please everyone…….but sometimes you find someone who appreciates the out of the ordinary recipe. I made a Roasted Beet Pesto Pizza for Tim and I. It was incredibly tasty and we both really enjoyed it. Beets are not everyone’s cup of tea and the color can be off putting to some…….unless they know how great beets are!
I went for my routine Mammogram and was talking to the tech about food. I told her about writing the blog and gave her one of our cards. She mentioned the fact that she liked simple things without odd ingredients. I told her about the pizza and although she didn’t turn up her nose, I could tell it might not be her thing. She proceeded to tell me one of her co-workers really liked beets and she would tell her about the blog.
After I was finished, as I was leaving the co-worker ask if I was the blog lady…..too cute. I said I was and she in a pleading voice said “Please tell me there is goat cheese on your pizza”. She said she had been to a restaurant that had a beet pizza and it had goat cheese……guess what….. mine does!!
Mine also has spinach, and mozzarella cheese. I bought a crust……way easier if you are in a time crunch like I am so much these days. I made the beets into a pesto……….walnuts, garlic, parmesan, and olive oil. Whatever you do with beets, roast them first, it makes them sweeter, and a breeze to peel.
I plant them every year in my garden, and when I harvest them, I roast them all. I line a sheet pan with foil, wash the beets leaving about an inch of the top and the tap root……that long mouse tail looking part………I put them on the lined sheet and cover them with foil, into a 400* oven for 45 minutes to an hour, depending on the size of the beets. Let them cool slightly, peel them, cutting off the stem and tap root. Then I freeze them. They freeze beautifully, so when you need them for a recipe….. boom…..you have them, roasted and ready to go.
So, for this recipe I smeared the beet pesto on the crust, topped it with baby spinach and the cheeses, and into the oven for 15-20 minutes………Roasted Beet Pesto Pizza. If no one but the tech at the hospital tries this, I will have made one person happy…….wait three as I said, Tim and I really liked it, so don’t be put off by the color or the idea of beets, roast them and give Roasted Beet Pesto Pizza a try……..
Add all ingredients except for the olive oil to a food processor or blender and blend briefly
Leaving the food processor (or blender) running, slowly add the olive oil until all ingredients are well combined. If the pesto is too thick try adding a small amount of water until pesto is smooth.