Pesto!

It's Basil season, which is good, because you need lots of Basil to make Pesto. And right now, we have lots of Basil.

Basil is pretty much the only key ingredient that I use in my Pesto recipe that is in traditional Pesto... I mean, ya know aside from salt & olive oil and lemon or lime or whatever.

Speaking of ingredients:
Clockwise, starting at 6p: Serrano Pepper (which I recommend not using), Garlic, Basil, Cashew pieces, Nutritional Yeast, Arugala, and Lemon in the middle.
Not pictured is Salt & Olive Oil.

The traditional Pesto recipe I know is non-vegan. I know it be as follows:
Basil, Walnuts, Salt, Olive Oil, Parmesan... Lime...?

But whatever, I like Cashews & Nutritional Yeast better than Walnuts & Parmesan, and they're cheaper.

On to the Unorthodox Vegan Pesto.
I have noticed that what you put down first affects the consistency of the recipe, like with the Raw Soup, Tomatoes first.

For some reason, Garlic & Cashews go first.
That's the consistency I like I guess.

Next is the Basil & Arugala, and the Serrano Pepper.

Followed by Nutritional Yeast & Lemon

And finally, Olive Oil.
I forgot to add Salt. But that's what taste tests are for.

Process.
You may have to use a rubber spatula or something to shove down some of the ingredients that were violently thrown up on the side of the reservoir, but it shouldn't be too difficult to get a nice even consistency.

Give it a taste.
You guessed it, needs Salt.
It is also, at this point, that I realized I would not recommend Serrano Pepper.

As it turns out, we have plenty of room so we can do it all over again with the ingredients we want in another layer.
Garlic, Cashews, Basil, Arugala, Salt, Lemon, Olive Oil, Nutritional Yeast

And process...
Taste test results are excellent, much better than before and maintains the same consistency, so this totally blows my theory about order of ingredients out of the processor.

But lo, we have more room for yet more Pesto.
So lets do it again. That last layer combo seemed to work.

Garlic, Cashews, Basil, Arugala, Lemon, Salt, Nutritional Yeast.

Taste test.

Yep, that works.

This goes good with Pasta, Toast & Crackers, but I'm making this for a stove-top version of Veggie & Rice Casserole, because the oven is still broken, which will be my next post.

Alcohol Infusion

I'm infusing alcohol.

I used a 1.75 of PDX '88 Vodka (distilled in my very own SE PDX according to the label) & Metaxa Brandy (Greek).
I cut up some flavors and split the alcohol fairly evenly between four 16oz. jars.
I'm letting them steep for about a week.
I need some help coming up with some -names though. I'm open to suggestion.

Left to right:
*Ginger infused Vodka.
There's this drink at this bistro, Savoy, in the 26th & Clinton neighborhood, that makes a drink they call the Milwaukee Mule. Vodka, Ginger Beer & Lime are involved.
This would be good for that.
-There's a Ginger Vodka already on the market called Yazi or something.
That's a pretty good name. I think a 'z' definitely needs to be involved in the name somehow. 'X' would probably be good too. Something to give it a zing sound. Hygingxe...?

*Basil & Serrano Pepper infused Vodka.
I think this will make the best Bloody Mary's.
This friend of mine was seeing this lady a while back. At one of his parties she brought him a similar infusion, and I was raving about how awesome that was; a home alcohol infusion. So she gave it to me instead of to him, saying she would get him more later. I felt pretty bad.
I think it was his birthday party.
-Hot Redemption...?

*Valencia Orange, Cinnamon Stick & Damiana infused Brandy
The Sapphire Hotel infuses their alcohol and comes up with their own drinks. I would go there and see all their jars sitting on top of cabinets & shelves with fruit in it.
They kind of inspired me for this project.
On Sundays they have live music and a drink special. One time the drink special involved Orange & Clove infused Brandy (or was it Vodka? Or was it Bourbon?).
I can't remember what the name of the drink was either.
I'm thinking this would be fine straight or on the rocks, or maybe in an Olde Fashioned or a
Manhattan.
It should be noted that Cinnamon & Damiana are aphrodisiacs.
-Madame Brandiana...?

*Cherry infused Brandy
A friend of mine turned me on to Brandy Manhattans. But they range anywhere from $5-12.
That gets pretty expensive.
Plus no place makes them the same. Some establishments use Bitters, others use Sweet Vermouth only. And they almost always come in a Martini glass, which I am notorious for spilling.
So, ordering a Brandy Manhattan usually went like this:
Brandy Manhattan - Christian Brother's is fine, Grenadine instead of Bitters, chilled, no ice, in a tumbler/low.
Or something like that.
After a while I kinda got tired of ordering like Sally...


...and being the thrifty, yet discreet, lush that I am, I decided to just get the ingredients myself.
Well, Grenadine (and even Sweet Vermouth), as it turns out, have quite a bit of High Fructose Corn Syrup in them, and I try to avoid the devil's Nectar.
That's when I had the epiphany for the Pallbearer (or the pawlbear)...
Brandy w/ Dark Fruit Juice (Pomegranate, Cherry, Blueberry even Cranberry, or any combination) chilled, no ice, served low.
Delicious & nutritious.

Short story long.
-Low Maintenance...?

Stir Fry - Classic

Stir frying is pretty easy.
It's kind of the first real meal I learned to cook, once I moved past that Ramen, Rice-a-Roni & frozen TV dinners phase in college.
It's like the Pythagorean Theorum of cooking.
Hm.
Actually, I think it's more like a + b = c... there's nothing squared in this recipe.

If a = Rice and c = Stir Fry, solve for b.
b = Veggies, but I have to show my work:

Chop garlic & hot pepper

Heat oil in wok (or iron skillet... or whatever pan)
Saute' Garlic & Peppers

Gather the Veggies & Fungi
Clockwise: Shiitake Mushrooms, Red Pepper, Purple Kale, Green Peas, Green Asparagus.

Chop & toss them in with the Garlic & Pepper.
So colorful.

Season.
Black & White Pepper, Paprika, Turmeric.
Do not salt. Use Tamari, or soy sauce, or Bragg's.

For the record I did not cut my finger while chopping veggies, I actually cut my finger on a tape measure in a style very similar to how one would receive a paper cut, while working on this trellis:
For to grow Hops.
mmm... beer

Okay then, gather your herbs.
Tarragon.

Sage. Thyme.
Chop & add to the mix.

I've also recently started adding a nice tart fruit to accent the flavor.
Some of the peaches out here in pdx have had some pretty good flavor to them.
However, this one does not.
That Peach is white... of course!
Not bad though, I'll save this one for the breakfast burritos.

Pineapple & Oranges fare pretty well in this mix, but today we're going with Mango.
Eesh.
A little bruised, and feels a little funny... texture-wise.
But it tastes alright.. it'll do.

Also pictured is Arugala & Basil
Not pictured is Coconut Milk. I added it because it goes well with Mango.

Mix it all up and give it a taste.

Hm.

The Mango needs a bit of help.
Add a bit of Lemon.
I've been trying not to add lemon because I kinda got carried away for awhile there, the Lemon, Garlic, Tamari, Ginger & Basil kinda overwhelmed everything, so I'm doing my best to cut back from using those ingredients all the time.

I also forgot to add Tamari.
Tamari is a staple in this dish, despite what I just said above, and stands out quite nicely when it's not competing with all the taste sensations listed immediately above.

And another taste.

That'll work.
Ta-daa.

Serve with Rice (which was pre-made).

This, I would say, is B work at best.
Turns out I wasn't so in the mood for the Coconut Milk.
If I add the Coconut Milk, I would also usually add a nice licorice tea to thin it out and make it a soup, but I think I'm kinda getting burnt out on that as well.
But whatever, it's still way better than Ramen.

This should go without saying, but most of these ingredients are optional.
The Coconut Milk & fruit are the most unnecessary.
And you could probably get away with a minimum of 3 Veggies.
And ya know the herbs are just fresh seasoning.
So really, the equation in it's simplest form is 3 Veggies & Rice.

okay then

good luck