Pasta Delights With Sun Dried Tomato Pesto

The past few days have been gloomy with the skies overcast with rain clouds which always making feel uneasy and frustrated. Today it feels great to see the sun with a bit of chill run down the spine. A great day and I was in a very good mood....really wanted to prepare something special for lunch tday as my hubby was working from home. Just remembered that I recently I brought a jar of sun-dried tomatoes which has been hiding in my refrigerator for a t some time now and tends to be visible whenever my hubby peeks into the fridge, he sighs and says "when are you going to use this? The entire recipe is inspired by using sundried tomatoes....hmm a restaurant style menu like Applebee..just a try to prepare something different from normal routine lunches..it's doesn't cost as much as the fancy restaurant :DD

Ingredients For Sun dried Tomato Pesto:

4tbsp sun-dried tomatoes

2tbsp chopped fresh basil

2tbsp chopped fresh coriander leaves

1tbsp chopped garlic

1/4 cup chopped walnuts

3tbsp chopped onion

1/4 cup balsamic vinegar

1tbsp tomato paste

1/3 cup crushed tomatoes

1/2 cup olive oil

1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

salt to taste

Preparation Methods:

Place sun-dried tomatoes in a bowl and cover with warm water for 5 minutes, or until tender. In a food processor or blender combine sun-dried tomatoes, basil, coriander leaves,garlic, walnuts and onion; process until well blended. Add vinegar, tomato paste, crushed tomatoes and process. Stir in olive oil and Parmesan cheese. Season with salt to taste.

1/2lb of pasta of your choice

1 cup chopped mushrooms

1/4 cup fresh chopped parsley

4tbsp sundries tomato pesto

salt and pepper

Cook the pasta in a large pot of boiling salted water until tender but still firm to the bite, stirring occasionally, about 8 minutes. Drain, reserving 1 cup of the cooking liquid.Meanwhile add 2tbsp olive and saute the chopped mushroom till tender. Add the pasta to the pesto and toss to coat, adding enough reserved cooking liquid to moisten. Season the pasta, to taste, with salt and pepper and serve. Garnish with chopped parsley.

Ingredients for Grilled Vegetables:

1 cup baby carrots

1/2 cup fava beans

1 cup chipotle onions

1/2 cup snow peas

1 red bell pepper diced

1 cup diced purple baby potatoes

1tbsp crushed red pepper flasks

1tsp onion powder

1tsp garlic powder

2tbsp chopped basil leaves

1tbsp chopped thyme

salt to taste

2tbsp olive oil

1tbsp balsamic vinegar

1tsp garlic and herb seasoning (any brand)

chopped carrot leaves

Preparation Methods:

Blanch all the vegetable for 10 minutes and drain. Add the vegetables in a large bowl and mix well with all the given spice. Leave them to sit for 3 hours. Pre -heat the oven to 350 °F and grill them for 35 minutes or until golden. Toss in some carrot leaves and give a good mix.

Ingredients for Stuffed Chicken Rolls:

4 skinless boneless chicken breast
1 packet of bacon strips
2tbsp sun-dried tomatoes
1tsp chopped garlic
1/4 cup mint leaves
salt and pepper
1/2 cup chopped mushrooms
1/4 cup chopped basil leaves

Preparation Methods:

Preheat oven to 350°F.Place chicken breasts between two layers of wax paper and pound with a meat mallet to 1/4 thick cutlets.Blend sun-dried tomatoes.salt, pepper,garlic,mint with 3tbsp olive to a smooth paste.Apply the paste evenly on both sides of the chicken cutlets and leave in fridge overnite.Heat 2tsp of the olive oil in a small skillet over medium-high heat. Add the mushrooms, basil leaves and saute until lightly browned, 2 to 3 minutes. Season with salt and pepper, to taste; let cool.Lay the chicken cutlet on a clean surface and add the mushroom mixture evenly. Carefully roll them up tightly making sure that the stuffing doesn't spill out. Then on the same surface line up enough strips of bacon and place the chicken roll in centre and wrap the strips to cover up the chicken roll. Place the rolls on a greased tray and bake for about 45 minutes or until golden.

Actually I really very happy as my first attempt to try a full Italian Course Meal was a great success.These dishes are pretty costly at the restaurant. We could always prepare the best in any dishes with a few tricks of our own at less cost presented in our own environment. Look forward for many more of inspired meals from my kitchen to yours. Happy cooking and do try out this recipe and let me know your suggestion.

I have also try out this recipe for Home-made un-Dried Toamtoes hmm actually oven -dried tomatoes. The recipe will be post very soon.