Boston was overrun with rowdy revelers dressed in green when I walked in town yesterday, reminding me that I still had time to prepare something properly Irish for dinner.
My supper plans were already made however, based on a craving for homemade pizza. Ever since Trader Joe's stopped carrying jars of Cilantro Walnut Pesto, I've bemoaned the loss of my most favorite replacement for red pizza sauce. Obviously this cilantro sauce would have been the perfect thing to satisfy my craving and to supply a bit of the old green on St. Patrick's Day.
Not wanting to deny my Irish heritage, even if it's only by marriage, I turned to the ever trusty Google. Along with many other sad folks, Oh my GOD> MY trader joe's discontinued the cilantro walnut pesto!!!!!, I also found what I was really looking for, a couple of recipes so I could make my own. I chose the one from Emeril, thinking it would be the most like the bottled stuff, but after making it, I realized it was too cheesy and not oily or spicy enough. I doctored it up a bit with lots more oil, some lime juice and extra salt. It looked perfect for St. Patrick's Day as it went into the oven, all bright green underneath the toppings of caramelized onions, sauteed mushrooms and split Kalamata olives, and it tasted pretty darn good too.
Next time though, I'm going to try this recipe from Kat; it has more oil, no Parmesan and a Jalapeno to spice it up. Right now though I've got two authentic TJ's Cilantro Walnut Pesto jars (saved because I thought I'd use them for beach plum jelly) filled with my homemade version. And I'm not waiting till next St. Patrick's Day for more green pizza.