Cooking Crusade

Is there anything better than fresh homemade pesto? The jarred stuff can be useful in a pinch, but in my opinion, it pales in comparison with the real stuff. Plus it’s usually filled with preservatives and probably all kinds of other things you wouldn’t normally put in your food, so making it from scratch is much healthier too!

I had a good amount of macadamias stashed away at home (thanks to Australian Macadamias) and thought I’d try substituting macadamias for the usual pine nuts — I was really happy with the results! Macadamias are generally cheaper than the pricey pine nut too, which makes this homemade pesto a little easier on the wallet to produce. I really enjoyed the extra crrunch and texture the macadamias gave to this recipe, which was quite a bit chunkier than your every-day pesto sauce and a nice change.

As per the usual pesto recipes, this recipe is unbelievably simple to put together. Just a few every day ingredients thrown together in the food processor, pulsed, and then it’s ready to be eaten in a variety of ways: with fresh steaming pasta, as a dip or even on toast with a fried egg on top (see below for my list of ideas for how you can use this incredibly versatile recipe)!

Macadamia Pesto

Author: CookingCrusade.com
Makes: Just over a cup of pesto
Time to prepare: 5 minutes

Macadamia Pesto

• 1 cup loosely packed basil leaves
• 1/2 cup raw macadamias (unsalted)
• 3 garlic cloves, peeled
• 1/2 cup parmesan cheese, sliced, or grated
• 1/4 cup macadamia oil (or you could use olive oil or another mild flavoured oil, such as soybean or rice bran)

Equipment needed: a food processor

Steps

1. Place all ingredients into food processor bowl and pulse until chunky. Serve.

You could also try toasting your macadamia nuts prior to blending for a bit of extra flavour.

This pesto is fantastic stirred through freshly cooked pasta or gnocchi, but there are lots of to her ways you could use up leftover pesto! Why not try:

• Adding a spoonful to your scrambled eggs in the morning
• Spreading some on toasted bread, then topping with fresh garlicky chopped tomatoes for a twist on your classic bruschetta
• Stirring through a few spoonfuls to freshly cooked risotto
• Adding to a cheesy sauce (for basil macaroni and cheese, or in a bechamel sauce to layer between your lasagne)
• Whip with softened whipped butter to make flavoured pesto butter – great on toast!
• Serve as an accompaniment to meat like steaks, baked chicken breast, fish fillets or serve with steamed veggies
• Use as a sandwich spread with your fave sandwich ingredients, or for wraps
• Whip with cream cheese, or as a dip for crackers or veggie sticks

And I’m sure there are many more creative uses for pesto out there. Let me know if you have any other ideas!

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“There’s always money in the Banana Stand.”

Arrested Development has been one of my favourite shows for years. Sadly it was cruelly cancelled by Fox during its third season, much to the disappointment of all its fans. It grew in popularity after its cancellation and finally, seven years later, they released a fourth season via Netflix (which premiered 26 May 2013), woohoo! I wanted to celebrate this momentous occasion by making some homemade Bluth bananas, a treat which is sold on the show at the family’s Banana Stand.

(From the Arrested Development facebook fan page.)

As you can see its a pretty easy recipe (my favourite kind!) and is a fun treat to stash away in the freezer. It would be great to make with kids!

Peel four ripe bananas and seal in a plastic bag to freeze for at least one hour (or overnight if you have the time). Remove the bananas from the fridge and insert a popsicle stick or similar (I used the plastic sticks from my iceblock moulds).

If you are crushing your own nuts, this is a good step to get out of the way while the bananas are freezing. I used a handful of almonds and macadamias (but you can use whatever you like: walnuts, cashews, peanuts… anything really). Spread out your crushed nuts on a flat plate to roll your bananas in.

Melt some good quality chocolate (I used dark) and dip your bananas in the chocolate and roll them in the crushed nuts (I made some mini Bluth bananas by cutting them in half as well). You can either eat them now, with the melted chocolate (recommended) or allow them to set in the fridge and allow the chocolate to harden. If you’re going to set them in the fridge, I would recommend adding a teaspoon of coconut oil to the melted chocolate before coating the bananas – this will make the chocolate coating a bit thinner and easier to bite into. You can store them in the freezer for up to one week.

Frozen Bluth Bananas

Author: CookingCrusade.com

Makes: 4 large frozen bananas, or 2 large and 4 small (depending on how you want them!)
Time to prepare: min. 1 hour to freeze, 10-15 mins to assemble

Bluth Frozen Bananas

• 4 ripe bananas
• 1 cup of nuts of your choice (I used 1/2 cup macadamias and 1/2 cup of almonds) you can also omit these if you have a nut allergy
• 1x200g block of chocolate (I used dark but you could use milk or white if you prefer)
• 1 teaspoon coconut oil (optional)

Equipment needed: a food processor (or you can seal your nuts in a ziplock bag and bash them with a rolling pin!), a bowl to melt chocolate in, 4 popsicle sticks or similar, 1 plate, ziplock bags

Steps

1. Peel bananas and place in a ziplock bag to freeze for at least one hour (overnight if time permits).
2. Remove bananas from the freezer and ziplock bag. Insert popsicle sticks into base of bananas. If you want to make mini versions, cut frozen bananas in half and insert popsicle sticks into cut bases.
3. Melt chocolate in a microwave-proof bowl. If you are planning on putting your bananas in the fridge after coating (or storing any leftovers in the freezer), add a teaspoon of coconut oil to your chocolate now.
4. Dip frozen bananas into chocolate, coating completely.
5. Roll your chocolate coated bananas immediately into your plate of crushed nuts until they are completely covered.
6. Serve, or place in the fridge to harden the chocolate if you prefer them that way. Store any leftovers in the freezer for up to a week.

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