Oh, Never Mind!

Call off the Tropical Storm Warning. Isaac has gone west enough to leave us with just rain and wind and maybe not even that much of that. Tomorrow is a regular work day, schools are open, etc.

I didn't do any real "storm prep" and put anything away, jaded Floridian that I am I was waiting for this afternoon before giving a damn, but I did observe the size of the basil plants on my balcony. One is raggedy and woody and needs to go bye-bye. The other is lush and just a bit leggy and needed to be cut back, and those gorgeous leaves needed to go somewhere. Pesto!

There are various recipes for vegan pesto, and I'll probably get around to trying others, but this is really delicious. I'm doing my best to stay both vegan and as fat free as I can, and even a lot of the vegan pesto recipes call for pine nuts and olive oil. This one didn't, and I'm glad I tested it. It's not an imitation of a "real" pesto full of cheese and pine nuts and oil, it's a very fresh-tasting mix of basil and white beans, garlic and lemon. No, it doesn't taste "just like" the pesto you might be used to but it's delicious on its own, and that, to me, is the mark of a winner vegan recipe. I'm not a big fan of meals based on faux-meat soy products and substitutes, with a few exceptions they are seldom really satisfying. I really prefer recipes that are what they are, and aren't trying to imitate something else. (I like my food like I like people - just BE.)

I'm going to toss this not-pesto with some hot penne pasta for dinner tomorrow, or maybe spread it on a mini-pizza crust and top it with other veggies, and accompany it with a nice big salad. (For you non-vegans, I think this would be great topping grilled fish or chicken.) I am also wondering about just spreading it on thin slices of bread and popping it under the broiler to warm up and get crispy on the edges.

So the storm was a fizzle here, tomorrow will be a wetter than usual but undramatic day, and my big accomplishment besides the pesto was to finish the body of the 1824 Cotton Sweater and start a sleeve. And that's about all I have to report for today.