Spinach Pesto

Y'all, I fixed my computer.  And I made pesto.  More on that later.  I took my Macbook apart and replaced a tiny cable that was so very important.  My inverter cable had a short in it that kept the backlight from staying on.  How did I figure this out?  Like every important question in my life, I googled it.  Then I found a guide that led me through the whole process.  I ordered the part from Amazon and sat down for a few hours to replace the cable.  I won't lie, a couple of times I wanted to throw my computer across the room, but when I booted it up and the problem was gone...I felt incredibly accomplished.  Plus I saved a bunch of money doing it myself.

Pesto is way easier than disassembling and reassembling a computer.  I won't claim this is authentic or traditional.  I didn't crush it with a mortar and pestle.  It has more spinach than basil.  I'm not Italian; in fact I couldn't be more WASP-y.  So I took what I knew and tossed in a food processor.  I was happy with the outcome, and even happier when I spread it on toasted bread covered in goat cheese.

You don't need much for this.  Spinach, basil, garlic, pine nuts, red pepper flakes, salt, olive oil, and Parmesan.

Toast the pine nuts in a small pan over medium heat.  Toasting nuts almost always makes them better.

Toss the spinach and garlic in a food processor.  I halved the garlic, but it's all getting chopped up anyway.

Add the basil and pine nuts too.

A few pulses and you get this!

 Sprinkle in the Parm, salt, and red pepper...

And stream in the olive oil.

A few more pulses and you have a delightful green spread! If you like your pesto a little less smooth, just don't pulse it as much.  Want it a little looser?  Add more olive oil.  Easy peasy.

You can use pesto in so many ways.  Add some to pasta, top a pizza, poach an egg and top with pesto. It's really whatever your heart desires.

 My heart desired bread toasted with olive oil and shmeared with goat cheese.

And a healthy dollop of spinach pesto.

Spinach Pesto (makes about 1 cup)

5 c baby spinach leaves
7-8 basil leaves, a mix of big and small leaves
2 cloves garlic, halved
2 tbs pine nuts
1/4 c freshly grated Parmesan
1/4 tsp red pepper flakes
1/4 tsp kosher salt
1/4 c extra-virgin olive oil

• In a small pan, toast the pine nuts over medium heat, about 5 minutes.  Remove from the heat.
• Combine spinach, basil, garlic, and pine nuts in a food processor.  Pulse 4-5 times to chop and combine everything.  Sprinkle in the Parmesan, red pepper, and salt.  Stream in the olive oil and pulse a few more times.  Ta-da, you have pesto!  Store in an airtight container and use within a week.