February 8, 2018; Thursday
Hi there!
I’m very excited to share with you a recipe I learned a while back from a book and added my twist to it, it’s not much but for me it’s a perfect dish for brunch aka my favourite meal of the day!
As you know (or not), I’m Filipino and in every Filipino household there’s always this kind of plant in our backyards –kinda like a small tree of some sort called Malunggay or Horseradish tree in English according to Google (*click here for more info*). It resembles sort of a herb but it doesn’t really have that strong taste nor smell to it unlike the others. This has tons of medicinal properties and nutrients in which all our elders believe so that’s why we came to learn about it since we were little. We usually put these in soups, in beverages or incorporate it with bread and some other pastries and some more other stuff as well.
This time, I decided to combine it with some basil to make a pesto. So here’s how I did it.
Malunggay Pesto Pasta
with roasted cashews, mozzerelline, bacon bits
Ingredients:
Pesto: Malunggay leaves (washed) Basil Olive oil Garlic Cashews-roasted Parmesan cheese Salt and pepper Pasta Mozzerelline (mini mozzarella balls) Cooked bacon (optional)
Procedure:
1. On a food processor, add peeled garlic cloves the roasted cashew nuts first (roasting them lets it release its natural oils and gives more depth in flavor) – I used cashews because I really love them personally but you can use whatever nuts you have. Walnuts are really great substitute as well. Set aside some crushed toasted cashews for presentation.
2. Add the malunggay leaves and basil, pulse it a bit and then add olive oil slowly. Season it with salt and pepper, add more olive oil until you get that perfect pesto texture and add the parmesan cheese last.
3. On a pot with boiling water, add some salt and cook pasta according to packaging instructions. Drain, set aside and set aside some pasta water as well.
4. Add pesto on a heated pan and add the pasta water and season to taste. Toss in the pasta.
5. Place on desired plate and top with some more crushed roasted cashews, bacon bits, parmesan, some shredded mozzerelline, drizzle a little bit of olive oil to finish.
Note: you can just pulse the pesto a little bit more if you don’t want it to have a “chunky” consistency.
Forgive me! It’s been quite a while since I practiced and my plating skills is a bit rusty this time. ;)
So there you have it, guys! A really quick and easy pesto recipe with a little bit of Filipino twist to it.
Overall the taste was better than I expected, although I overcooked my pasta a bit but that nonetheless, all the flavours were well balanced and the malunggay really worked well with the basil.
Until next time! Happy cooking!
xx Mary
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