Pesto

I have a basil plant on my deck and I have picked the poor thing nearly bald because I have been making pesto from it recently.  I've used the pesto in chicken pesto pizza and for pasta (which I also put chicken in). I purchased a bag of pine nuts (or pignoli nuts as my mother likes to call them) from the grocery store some time ago and store it in the freezer. According to Alton Brown, the oils in nuts make them go bad, so if you store them in the freezer you can keep them longer.

Pesto

1 c. freshly picked and washed basil leaves
1/4 c. pine nuts
1/4 c. parmesan cheese
1 tbsp. lemon juice
1 clove garlic
salt and pepper to taste
olive oil

I added all ingredients except for the olive oil into my food processor. After pulsing the ingredients together, slowly add the olive oil to the mixture until it reaches the appropriate consistency. For added zing, I also have put crushed red pepper flakes in.

Football food

I know it's still summer and that football season has not officially started yet, but I am already thinking about good fall-ish football game food. One staple food I associate with Sundays and football is Italian hot sausage. Tonight there is a Steelers' preseason game so I am hankering for some good Pittsburgh style food. Sadly, I can't find a remotely acceptable substitute for Parma Sausage so I had to use the local grocery store alternative. I had a very difficult time finding a recipe that I liked, so I made one up as I went.

Italian Hot Sausage (Crock Pot Style)

1 package Italian hot sausage (six sausages)

1 32 oz. can tomato sauce

1/2 c. water

1/2 green bell pepper chopped

1/2 white onion chopped

1 bay leaf

1 tbsp. basil

1/2 c. red wine (i had malbec on hand)

Fresh rolls

Mozzarella cheese

Brown sausage in a skillet with pepper and onion. Once browned, combine with other ingredients in a crock pot. Set crock pot on low for 6 hrs.

If anyone can think of other sides/apps, or desserts, let me know. I want to have a full on Steelers party sooner rather than later.

To serve, slice rolls and put a sausage with sauce inside. Add mozzarella.