Blanched Almonds

When I mentioned in the last post that I would do a post on blanched almonds later, I really didn't think I'd be doing it anytime soon...

So I was quite surprised when two people told me that they were waiting for this post so they could make the pesto!

R and V-this is for you. And you'd better have made that pesto now!

There are two ways of doing this, the Julia Child (and the rest of the world) way and MY way. My way obviously factors in the possibility that you might want to make a call while you're cooking, or read that last page, or whatever... So stick with me here people!

Almonds, in a bowl.

Thats boiling water from my kettle (well, my mother's, but its on loan. Permanently. Shhh...don't tell her I said so!) Pour enough to cover the almonds.

Wait for a minute or two, (yes, now is when you get to drink the iced tea) drain the water. And, as Julia says-squeeze each almond between the thumb and forefinger, and the almond will slip out of the skin. Or if you're me, then you went to check your e-mail, and forgot about the almonds for a good twenty minutes. which basically means that you'll have to repeat the whole boiling water step.

Discard the skins.

Spread out the almonds on a hotel/roasting pan/sheet. Five minutes at 350 degrees F should have them nice and dry...

And now you can get started making that pesto!

Pesto!

We're talking about one of my favorite foods ever!! I have this thing for pesto, can't keep my hands off it!! And ever since I discovered that basil pesto isn't the only kind, well, lets just say I can't stop experimenting, or eating!

I was cleaning out my fridge today and boy, do I have a lot of cheese for a single girl living alone! So the goal is to use it all up in the next 3 weeks. I'm hoping to find some interesting recipes, so wish me luck! I thought I'd begin with the parmesan. So moving on to the other ingredients...

Thyme (which is DIVINE with tomatoes), garlic (but of course), extra virgin olive oil, tomatoes, and almonds (you could use cashew nuts as well, but i have about 2 pounds of these lying around, so...) 

Quarter the tomatoes.

Stick them in a big sheet/roasting pan or something similar.

Peel and rough chop the garlic. Make sure the pieces and nice and chunky. We'll be roasting it all later, and trust me when i tell you, there are few things worse than burnt garlic.

Sprinkle some thyme. Be generous! Especially if you have only the dry kind-like I do.

A quarter cup of olive oil. Drizzle that over the tomatoes.

Add some salt. Give it a good mix with a spoon/your hands, don't worry, I won't judge you :)

Stick it in the oven, 30-45 minutes.

Blanch the almonds. No, I shall not tell you how. Be proactive and look it up! Or wait for me to do a post on blanching almonds.

Grate the cheese. (Yes, I have an amazing cheese grater. And yes, I am showing off!)

Now go read a book/take a shower, whatever.

In about 30 minutes or a bit more your tomatoes should look like this... No, you CANNOT eat them now. Control yourself for god's sake!

Put it all in the blender, Blend until smooth. 

Put it in a pretty bowl, or, if you're anything like me, put it in the only presentable bowl you have in the kitchen. Drizzle some olive oil on top. 

P.S.-Yes, I have this really cool pink lighter (you can see it in the background can't you. And no, I don't smoke, its for my incense sticks!)

Recipe

Ingredients:

Tomatoes - 2 pounds

Garlic - 6 cloves (or more, if you're brave!)

Thyme - 2 tablespoons

Parmesan Cheese - 1/2-3/4th of a cup, grated

Almonds - 1/2 cup

Extra Virgin Olive Oil - 1/4 cup, plus 1 tablespoon for the end

Salt - you decide.

Quarter the tomatoes.

Peel and roughly chop the garlic.

Put the above two on a roasting sheet. 

Sprinkle thyme, salt and the 1/4 cup of olive oil on top.

Bake at 350 degrees F for 30-45 minutes (or until your tomatoes look like the ones in my photo).

Meanwhile, blanch the almonds and grate the cheese.

When its all done, blend until smooth.

Serve with the rest of the olive oil drizzled on top.

Oh, and this is probably perfect eaten with bread or really light crackers (that i shall make you in the next post)... But until then, I suggest you try the pesto with these yummy crackers that my friend, Shaheen makes.