Friday 29 July 2011

Olive and Almond Pesto




Something you'll give away- Everyday Matters

These are olives from last year's crop, these were fished out of a big jar where they are kept in salty water.
We don't have many olive trees and don't press our own oil,  but we have just enough for bottling in October/November.
Usually there are a few smaller jars to be given to the family, sometimes mixed with garlic, chopped celery and carrots.




I also picked some almonds today so I sketched those too.




They were still in their husks, so I peeled those off and have left them to dry.  I'm planning on making some pesto sauce with both the almonds and the olives.  I'll give you the receipe as that is the theme of this sketch!

Olive and Almond Pesto
Ingredients:
a handful of stoned and roughly chopped green olives
a bunch of fresh basil (approx 20 leaves)
about 10 chopped almonds
2 tablespoons of Parmesan cheese
half a clove of garlic (more if you like it and won't be getting close to anyone for the next 24 hours)
extra virgin olive oil
salt and pepper

Put all the ingredients in a liquidiser and give them a little whizz round pouring in a little olive oil, don't liquidise so much that you can't see the bits of almond in the pesto!
Toss in a pan with your spaghetti.
If you want you can leave out the cheese and use the pesto on crostini as an antipasto.

Buon appetito!




16 comments:

bettyfromtexas said...

This recipe and those sketches have me salivating!! Thank you for this beautiful summer goodness!

MaryO said...

What a treat! It's always a treat to see your work, but now a luscious sounding recipe, too??? Many thanks!

erleichda said...

mmm... a pesto with my most favorite ingrediens. i will try that ! Thanks : )

nanke's stuff said...

Mmm, that recipe sounds delicious! I do love olives and almonds. Your drawings are wonderful, as always! nancy

debra morris said...

Great delicious work and thanks for the recipe, I'll try it (definitely want to move to Italy now)

Unknown said...

I love your blog. Not only do I get to see great paintings, but I learn something interesting every time I visit! Love the olives! It's interesting to see what colors you have used to make them really come to life!

Anonymous said...

No matter how often I try, I just can't eat olives!! But I love your drawings!!

Timaree said...

Nice sketches. My daughter would put more than 1/2 a clove of garlic in the pesto though. She loves her garlic more than the almonds.

Dan Kent said...

I am giving the recipe to my wife (with an imploring expression on my face)! Love the drawings - golden and delicate.

Anonymous said...

The colours of the olives are great, and the recipe sounds very tasty - looking forward to trying it!

Anonymous said...

Yum - your recipe and your drawings look delicious. Can't wait to visit Tuscany in a few weeks and sample some of your lovely Italian food.
Sue

Lucia B. said...

Lovely post, Cathy! I have a special admiration for the pleasant colours of the shadows in your beautiful drawings of olives and almonds.

Gillian Mowbray said...

I wish I liked olives but I don't - I do love your drawings though - they look so cute - if that's possible. LOL

Ann said...

Sounds wonderful! And your drawings are just delicious!

Sarah Melling said...

There's something about a simple still life like these that I just adore. I love seeing the beauty in small everyday things, I guess... Gorgeous!

Alex said...

Beautifully drawn Cathy! Makes me kinda hungry for snacks now..hahaha