I don't know what the weather has been like in your neck of the woods lately, but here in San Diego it has been H-O-T hot! And because San Diego is a coastal city, the developers of this area, in their infinite wisdom, didn't install air conditioning in any of the buildings around town - not in my apartment, not in the building I work in, not even in the grocery store.
So as you might imagine, in these dog days of summer when it's 90 degrees outside and I have one measly little fan to cool me down, the last thing I want to do is turn on the oven, let alone eat a hearty bowl of pasta with tomato sauce. Luckily for me, there is pesto to the rescue. I thought I'd shake things up a bit from the classic pesto recipe that I often make (see here) by using sundried tomatoes, walnuts, and red pepper flakes to liven things up. Enjoy and stay cool wherever this recipe finds you!
Sundried Tomato Pesto
1 8 oz. jar of sundried tomatoes packed in olive oil, drained
1/2 cup basil
1/4 cup walnuts
3 cloves garlic
1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese
1/8 tsp red pepper flakes
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
1/3 cup reserved pasta cooking water
1 lb. pasta
Add sundried tomatoes, basil, walnuts, garlic, cheese, and red pepper flakes to food processor:
And blend until just mixed:
With motor running, pour olive oil in a steady stream into the top of the food processor and blend until pesto is smooth and oil has become incorporated.
Cook pasta in large pot of boiling water until al dente (according to package directions). Strain pasta, reserving 1/3 cup cooking water, and pour pasta into large bowl. Add pesto and reserved cooking water:
And stir to coat pasta evenly. Serve by topping with (what else?) more cheese:
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