Basil Pesto

Yes, this recipe is yet another slight variation of existing ones.  But this worked out about was well as any basil pesto I have made.  So I wanted to record what I did that was different.

The key differences were

1. I blanched the garlic in the pasta water, removing a lot of the sharpness of raw garlic
2. I cooked the pasta in a moderate pot of water, allowing me to get "thick" salted pasta water which I added to the pesto
3. I assumed the basil was not the dominant driver of the flavors, but the cheese and garlic were.

Basil leaves washed and dried

(Optional) Basil stems and other non-leaf bits

3-5 cloves of garlic, smashed and de-skinned

Salt

Parmesan or Romano or equiv cheese, grated or strips.  2-4 oz.

EVOO

Nuts (walnuts, pine nuts, pecans, or what have you)

Pasta

1. Bring less water than you would normally use to a boil.  Salt as needed.  (I used a lot of salt)
2. Blanche the garlic for 45-90 seconds.  (I put it in a "scooper utensil with holes")
3. Add pasta to the water and cook.  The water does not have to be boiling the whole time, but I like to keep the water above say 200F (near boiling at the very least)
4. Cook pasta until ala dente.  The water may get very thick and "slimy".
5. If convenient, add the basil stems and other bits to the pasta water such that they do not get dispersed (say via a cheese cloth or via being pinned between two utensils)
6. In a food processor, add the basil leaves, garlic, salt, cheese, EVOO
7. Pulse until all large bits are chopped, then blend until a smooth puree.
8. Toast nuts
9. Add nuts to the food processor and pulse.
10. Remove some of the pasta water to the pesto and blend.
11. Drain pasta.
12. Add pesto to the pasta in a bowl.  Eat.

Shrimp, corn, sausage chowder (dairy free)

This worked out amazingly well.  A bit of a shocker given how similar recipes I've made that have been good but not great.  As usual, I was making this up as I went along so the quantities are mere guidelines.

There was no dairy added.

1 qt Chicken Stock (I used the Costco carton, was a quart, hence this quantity)
5-9 Yukon Gold or Similar Gold potatoes
1 large onion
Olive Oil or some other Vegetable oil
Shrimp  (I used roughly a 1 pound of "old" frozen small shrimp)
Sausage (I used 4 links of a Smoked Beef Sausage Costco had for Passover)
1 or 2 cans of corn
(Optional) Flour and butter roux

1. Boil chicken stock in a "big pot"
2. Season the stock as desired with salt and cayenne.
3. Cube potatoes into small pieces (say 1/4 to 1/2")
4. Boil potatoes in stock until mostly done (say 20 min or 10 min in a pressure cooker)
5. Cut up onion into small pieces
6. Saute onion over med heat in 1-2 Tbsp of oil until almost soft
7. When potatoes are nearly done, add onions to stock + potatoes
8. Chop sausage into pieces and fry rendering most of its fat.  Remove fat, via paper towels.
9. Add sausage to the stock.
10. Open can(s) of corn and dump into the stock with none/some/all of the corn juice.
11. Meanwhile defrost the shrimp.  Drain.  Add to the stock.  This should occur near the end
12. (Optional) Melt butter and add flour and salt to make a roux.  Cook so the flour is not raw.  Add to the stock.