I was very pleasantly surprised at how this dish turned out. Up until now I’ve only tried making savory pastas, or the occasional lemon and seafood combination, but never sweet. Paired up with Gwyn’s incredible and ingenious cilantro pesto spread on the side, you’ve got yourself a real Italian meal, that’s actually not that Italian.
Side story! While I was couchsurfing in Rome last year I tried to make a pasta dish for my host but I only got so far as to telling him the ingredients. He said it himself; Italians are very particular about how they want their pastas to be made. My foreigner’s take on Italian pasta was rejected, so I made them couscous instead. I don’t think pumpkin is a common ingredient in Italian pastas, but please let me know if I’m completely wrong and just making up things. And well, the cilantro pesto doesn’t even have basil. Anyway, all that matters is how it tastes in the end. We don’t have to follow any specific formulas.
Since the pumpkin sauce is naturally sweet, the cilantro and almond pesto spread on some freshly baked bread is the perfect balancer. It’s very hard to find fresh basil in Spanish supermarkets. You’d have to buy a plant and try to keep it alive. Oh I’ve tried all right, but in the end I failed. Cilantro however, is overgrowing and cheapity cheap cheap, if not free all together. Gwyn found a huge patch of wild cilantro on the side of the road once and it occurred to her to make this delicious pesto! Good thinking!
Cilantro and Almond Pesto
Cooking for one, I’ve found over the past couple of years, has been relatively easily. Even when I buy ingredients in bulk, like the absurd amount of organic cilantro from El Vergel recently delivered to me, I usually find a way to use up everything. Making preserves and sauces is a great way to store foods for a longer period of time.
INGREDIENTS// for one jar
+ a BIG handful of cilantro with stems
+ 3-4 ounces (approx. 100 grams) of shelled almonds
+ 1-2 garlic cloves
+ 1/2 lemon for juice
+ 1/2 cup of extra virgin olive oil
+ 3/4 teaspoon salt
+ 1/2 teaspoon pepper
+ 1/2 teaspoon cumin
RECIPE//
This recipe will yield a small jar of pesto that will last you perhaps a month or so. Start by roughly chopping up the cilantro, removing any really thick stems. Do the same with the garlic cloves. Now add the almonds, olive oil, lemon juice, salt, pepper, and cumin. Careful that the cilantro isn’t “swimming” in the oil, as Gwyn put it so descriptively. If you accidentally pour too much oil, add more cilantro and almonds.
Put everything in a food processor to mix. Keep in mind, you still want to have little pieces of crunchy almonds so don't blend too finely. You can also use a hand blender or mortar and pestle. (Apologies to my friend Sandy who doesn’t have a hand blender. You can still make it without one! You just need to chop everything more finely, then mash the hell out of it.)
Use as a pasta topping, a spread in sandwiches or just on plain bread, serve with crackers, etc, etc.
Pumpkin Sauce Pasta
I finally used up my giant pumpkin after a month of being in my fridge. It was quite a relief since it took up an entire shelf and my roommates were starting to complain. My friends and I used up the other half of the pumpkin in a delicious savory pie with spinach and other veggies. And as much as I want to share that recipe, I can’t for the life of me remember how we made it or what ingredients were used. Enough of the pumpkin tease, on with the pasta.
INGREDIENTS// for two
+ 1/4 of a large pumpkin
+ 1/2 of an onion chopped
+ 2 tablespoons butter
+ 1 teaspoon nutmeg
+ 1/2 cup of cream
+ a few pinches of cilantro roughly chopped
+ 2-3 tablespoons grated parmesan cheese
+ salt and pepper to taste
+ 2-3 large handfuls of penne pasta
RECIPE//
On a low fire, add butter and spread on the bottom on the pan. Throw in your chopped onions and let it sweat for about 20 minutes. Meanwhile cut the pumpkin into about 1-inch cubes. Remove the seeds but leave the skin on if you want - it’ll become soft and edible after 30 minutes in the pan. Add those to the sweaty onions then cover the top to let the softening process begin.
While that’s cooking, make your pasta. I measure how much pasta I’m going to eat by grabbing a large handful. You probably noticed by now that I measure a lot of things by the handful. Since this recipe yields two portions, two handfuls will do the trick. If you have small hands, then maybe three. Toss them in when the pot of hot water starts boiling, along with a pinch of salt. Remove when they’re al dente.
After 30-40 minutes in the pan, the pumpkin pieces should be soft. I overdid it a bit so the pumpkin came out too mushy. They should still maintain somewhat of a cube form, so they look more presentable and photogenic. (Yes, these thoughts do occupy my mind.) Now add the cream, parmesan cheese, cilantro, salt and pepper. If the sauce is very thick, add a few spoonful of the pasta water. Finally, add the pasta, stir for a minute, and you’re ready to eat!
