Pesto, pesto, pesto

As summer draws to its inevitable close, it's very easy to fall back on memories of food: those wonderful apricots, the sun drenched tomato salad, the barbecue where you met the person you're seeing, that wonderful pesto on the pasta.

Well, soon there won't be basil. And even though there still is some, I for one find myself gravitating away from the summer flavors. Maybe I want to be the one who says "NO, I left YOU, you didn't leave ME," or whatever. So tonight we'll have what may be our last basil pesto of the year, with a piece of fish. Striped bass, and that, too, will disappear shortly.

But pesto does not have to disappear completely. "Pesto" just means a paste. You can make a pesto out of just about anything (and just about anyone can be a pest, but we won't go there).

During the autumn, I use a LOT of sage. It just "feels" like an autumnal herb, know what I'm saying? I don't know if it's because it's used in stuffing a lot, or if it's because it winters well, so it's there when other herbs aren't, but in any event, I use lots of it. Sage is strong. Where you may sometimes be tempted, for example, to use a whole bunch of basil in a dish, using a few leaves of sage for anything , is all you need. Too much, and you turn a dish into a very mediciny tasting item. But it makes wonderful pesto. How? Well, here we go.

You will need a good sized bunch of flat leaved parsley (Incidentally, does anyone know why curly leaved parsley exists? I've never seen a recipe call for it, and it can't be there just so that greasy diners have a garnish for a plate), and you should use the leaves and if you like, the TENDER part of the stem. Don't go too far down or you may wind up with a laxative effect from the fiber. For a nice sized bunch of parsley, start with about 8 or 10 sage leaves. Put them into a food processor with the parsley.

If you're wondering why I am being so careful with the sage, take a leaf, rub it between your fingers and smell. Strong,huh? No wonder that "saging" a space to clear it from ghosts is standard. They can't stand the smell).

You have your parsley and sage in the food processor bowl. Add a quarter cup of olive oil, and about a quarter cup of walnuts, toasted if you like (I do). Start the processor going and then add a clove or two of garlic, as well as a teaspoon or so of salt, and keep adding olive oil until you get the texture you want. Taste it for salt, keeping in mind that you MAY be adding cheese.

I say MAY because it's a misconception that all pestos have cheese in them. This is YOUR call. If you want cheese, add cheese. I prefer pecorino in this one, when I do use the cheese, but usually, I just use the pesto, as I will this weekend to garnish a soup of roasted carrots and fennel. You can make lots of this and freeze it in ice cube trays. It will keep well.

Onto another one. Sicily is home to some of the most vibrant foods in all of Italy. It is from there that a pesto of sun dried tomatoes comes.
Let me say at the start, that all sun dried tomatoes have NOT been sun dried. They can't be. Sun drying tomatoes requires lots of space. There isn't enough open space in the world to dry all the sun dried tomatoes in the world. Use the oil cured ones. It will make your job easy, and make sure they are nice and soft (my baked plum tomatoes would work well here). Add a hefty tablespoon of capers. If you use the salt cured ones, soak them for about half an hour before you use them. Put the stuff into a food processor, and go to work.

Here, you want to be careful with oil, since the tomatoes are carrying some, and more liquid will be released when you do the processing. You also want to be careful with salt, because just about all sun dried tomatoes have also been salted. You can leave this just as it is, or you can put in some pignoli nuts, too.

What you have now, is a very vibrant, strong tasting accompaniment. It is a freakin FABULOUS pasta sauce. It also goes with grilled meats, especially stronger tasting ones, in a way that few salsas can match. And, I confess, it makes a great sandwich filling. Yup. I have sat there with a big piece of semolina bread and tomato pesto on it, and been a very happy person.

These two pestos can waken up your food as the weather gets colder. You will notice a change in the flavor of things, and begin to appreciate the sense of nutrition rather than flavor. Having these available to help you along, will do just that.