Basil. Garlic. Olive oil. Pine nuts. Parmesan. These are the makings of a fabulous, wonderful, delicious pesto — and believe me, I adore pesto. It’s fabulous on so many things: pasta, sandwiches, baked potatoes, whatever.

When it comes to making pesto, I have always been a food processor girl. Seriously. Every pesto I have ever made has either whirled around in my Cuisinart Mini Prep Plus or in my full-sized food processor.

But recently, when I was working on an article for FabulousFoods.com, I tried something new: making pesto the old-fashioned way with a mortar and pestle. Let me tell you: I may never make it in the food processor again. Seriously. It was fabulous. The flavor was as bright and brilliant — and as good as the fabulous pesto that I buy nearly every week in the summer at our local organic farmers’ market. Read the rest of this entry…

Sometimes, it feels like I blink and a whole month has spun by. That’s what October felt like. It was a whirlwind of trips to New Hampshire and the Cape, along with birthdays, work projects and Halloween. I fear that I might blink again soon and have November speed past me too.

Before it does though, I wanted to tell you about a great organization that brings a little something extra to the lives of people who are down on their luck. While it might not fill a clear-cut need, I think something that brings a smile to faces fills an absolute need of delivering a little happiness … a little feeling of being special … to people who really need it.

Last year, I had the pleasure of meeting Lydia Walshin of The Perfect Pantry at the BlogHer Boston conference. She is a food writer and founder of Drop In & Decorate, a Rhode Island-based, tax-exempt nonprofit organization. This organization provides support for cooking decorating events held around the country and abroad, with the cookies produced being donated. This year, the nonprofit has support from some major companies who are making it easier than ever to just drop in.

What’s it all about? Here’s the basics, direct from Lydia:

The idea behind Drop In & Decorate is simple: bake some cookies; gather a group of family, friends, neighbors, co-workers, your worship group or book group to decorate the cookies together; donate the cookies to a nonprofit agency serving basic human needs in your own community. It’s a simple idea in a complicated world, and  something anyone can do.

If you’d like to host your own Drop In & Decorate® event, Pillsbury and Wilton would like to help. Pillsbury has donated 50 VIP coupons, worth $3.00 each, off any Pillsbury product — including sugar cookie mix, icing and flour — to be distributed, first come, first served, while supply lasts, to anyone who plans to host a Drop In & Decorate event (max. 5 coupons per person). And we’ll include a Comfort Grip cookie cutter, donated by Wilton, while our supply lasts.

Write to lydia AT ninecooks DOT com for more info on how to get your free coupons and cookie cutters.

It’s such a simple thing: to bake and decorate cookies. But it can mean so much. If you are looking for something charitable to do as a family, group or school this holiday season, check into Drop In & Decorate.

Happy birthday, Weekend Herb Blogging! Weekend Herb Blogging is celebrating its second birthday this weekend. Creator Kalyn of Kalyn’s Kitchen has challenged bloggers to incorporate an herb and a veggie into a dish for this weekend’s roundup. I have to admit, mine doesn’t quite fit the bill though, since tomatoes are a fruit, not a vegetable. Nonetheless, this was yummy enough to send anyway.

Growing season here in the Northeast is on its final legs. Pretty soon, we’ll be fending off frost warnings and storm watches. Eeek. But I am an enjoy it while you can sort of girl, so I am. My parents still have a few deliciously ripe tomatoes on their vines, so I am using them as fast as I can get them. I wouldn’t want to let those bright orbs of sweet goodness go to waste!

(Coincidentally, tomatoes are rich in lycopene, a powerful antioxidant that is known to help ward off cancer. Cooked tomatoes are the best source of lycopene.)

This pasta is a quick but hearty meal. I suggest using Barilla pasta, because its my favorite, but you can substitute another brand if you prefer. You’ll need 4 servings of cooked pasta when all is said and done. If you wanted to make this appropriate for a low-carb lifestyle, omit the sugar and stir in a bay leaf with the oregano. Remove before serving.

• Shawn and I recently enjoyed an anniversary meal at Jim Barbarie’s in Danbury, Conn. Read about the food here.
• I have a Spice Stack in my kitchen and it’s solving a few storage problems (yay!). Read about it here.
• I’ve been trying to cut back on my fattening sweets – really I have. Read about Smart Ones desserts here.

Where to start? There are so many elements to trying to lead a greener life. It encompasses everything from where we get our food from to what we clean with. For me, it even means staying away from unnecessary synthetics (in clothing, in the kitchen, etc).

I spent a good part of the last few months researching in preparation for going green. In a way, it felt counter-intuitive because I put off starting until I was sure I could start and continue with success. Part of my concern is with the aspect of where we get our food. My area of Connecticut is startlingly devoid of butchers, for instance. And finding things like wheat, flour and sugar that isn’t from a giant company and shipped for thousands of miles is pretty much impossible.

Some decide to take drastic measures for their green pursuits, much like No Impact Man is doing. That’s just not me. The more gradual change I am taking will ultimately be more sustainable in my life.

Want to know more about my green transition? Check out Operation Green, a weekly column by Cate of Sweetnicks and I on Well Fed On The Town. It appears every Monday.

I recently wrote about the Kenmore PRO line of appliances for The Cook’s Kitchen over at The Well Fed Network. The relatively new product line has professional equipment styling with a more affordable price (it doesn’t have all the bells and whistles either, but looks like it should). Have you seen these appliances on Top Chef and fallen in love? Or maybe you have them at home? Perhaps you’ve been oogling them in Sears? If you are in love with Kenmore PRO, it’s time for you to put your love into words. Read all about the Kenmore PRO: How Do I Love Thee? contest sponsored by Sears and The Well Fed Network here. The deadline for entries is Monday, June 20 at 11:59 p.m.

When Rachel from Food Maven (and Coconut & Lime) shot me an email about her one time event, What’s in Your Basket?, I was thrilled to join in. After all, it’s so much fun checking out what other people purchase.

Okay, okay, so that probably makes me a shopping cart voyeur, or something of the like. But that’s okay with me. I’ve discovered some interesting and exciting products through my snooping, so I would say that it isn’t only okay, but it’s worthwhile.

So, here it goes. Will and I hit Stew Leonard’s, a local chain of farm-market-y stores. This particular location in Danbury, CT used to be a tiny outdoor farm market and dairy. I remember stopping there with my grandmother (back when Reed’s Department Store was down the street). There were rows and rows of fresh apples, pears and other produce. Then Stew’s expanded, making the farm market more indoors. Today, it’s bigger than ever and encompasses a fishmonger, butcher and considerable prepared foods section.

Here’s the haul:

• fresh herbs (rosemary, sage, thyme) – $2.49/each
• 3 greenhouse tomatoes (1.41 lbs @ $1.99/lb) – $2.81
• 2 bulbs of garlic (0.37 lb @ $3.29/lb) – $1.29
• 1 small head of endive (0.33 lb @ $3.99/lb) – $1.32
• 1/2 gallon of freshly squeezed orange juice – $2.69
• 1/2 gallon of skim milk – $1.49
• Fage Greek Yogurt (fat free) – $3.99
• Dutch Gouda cheese wedge – $3.71
• brie with chives – $3.15
• roast beef cold cut ends – $1.61
• 1/2 pint chocolate milk – $0.49
• sliced baby bellas – $1.99
• bananas (1.41 lbs @ 0.59/lb) – $0.83

Grand Total: $32.84

A few notes:

The herbs come in larger and fresher bunches at Stew’s then the ones you find in tubs at Trader Joe’s and the like, so I am willing to pay the premium if I know I will be definitely using them. The endive was kept in the herb area and just looked so good that I needed to pick up just a little.

The roast beef ends are for my husband to snack on (hey, it’s better than chips or cookies).

The cheeses are all me. I am a cheese nut.

And this is my first time trying Fage yogurt . . . I will be using it in smoothies for breakfast.

Valentine’s Day is fast approaching. The stores are already sporting their reds and pinks, hearts and cupids. Hell, they’ve been doing that since Dec. 26. No matter though, with the V-day (and I am very fond of this holiday. It would be my #3 favorite holiday behind Halloween and Christmas, respectively) only one month and one day away, there is a lot of love-y, dove-y stuff to consider.

I’m no where near ready to share my Valentine’s Day menu, or even to give suggestions. But what I can do is show you a few nifty holiday things that would help your Valentine’s Day dinner turn out extra special. Or, maybe they will just look cool. Either way, these are some mighty cute gizmos and gadgets that I have on my WANT LIST.

First up, we have this darling Le Creuset Heart Casserole. It’s two-quarts and in the shape of a heart. Who wouldn’t love to cook in this pot?!? Okay, okay, it might be a slight challenge dealing with the extra curve, but I still think it’s just too cute. I could see myself making a nice pot of New England clam chowder in this, or perhaps some creamy risotto. Hmmm . . . now there are a few menu item ideas after all!

Now that we are on the topic of heart shaped Le Creuset cookware, I need to share a few adorable ramekins that would produce wonderful desserts (creme brulee, anyone?).

From left, you have a set of four Le Creuset Red Heart Shaped Ramekins, a pink covered Le Creuset Heart Shaped Ramekins, and a set of four Le Creuset Heart Ramekins with pastel interiors. First, the red ramekins – the red exterior would really pop with a delicious white dessert with red accents inside (perhaps a vanilla mousse with a delicious berry sauce?). My favorite is the covered pink ramekin, though I haven’t decided what I might cook in it if I had it. But it’s simple elegance is really appealing to me. Finally, the chestnut ramekins with pastel centers. These are really very cute. I think when my son is a little older (and maybe has a baby sister) these would be wonderful for a family Valentines Day event.

And really, what’s better to go with your heart shaped cookware then a heart shaped oven mitt (or two). This adorable and durable oven mitt is from Williams-Sonoma and comes (thankfully) in a pair.

Just a quick PSA . . .

Faith at Blog Appetite has created a wonderful post that highlights all of the Food Blog Award nominees so it’s easy click and see. Check that out here. Thanks Faith for all of your hard work!

And if you haven’t voted in the Food Blog Awards yet, you can do so here. Hurry! Time is running out. Polls close at midnight EST on Jan. 9 – just two days left to vote.

I came here to mention that the voting booths are open for the Food Blog Awards.

As a judge of this year’s FBAs, I am proud of the contribution I made and happy with our selections for finalists. I have no qualms about the popular blogs that didn’t make the cut. Just because a blog is popular doesn’t mean that it’s the best. Just because a blog is unknown doesn’t mean it’s not the best.

NOTE: The Well Fed Network is now defunct.

During the first few weeks of Hump Day Horizons, finding topics was easy. There was such an array to choose from. Honestly, the entire genre of upcoming books was at my disposal. But as time has worn on, things have gotten progressively more difficult. Some weeks it’s downright impossible to narrow down onto on solid topic.

And if you have any suggestions for future topics, leave me a comment.