sun-dried tomato basil pesto

Clean and simple, this sun-dried tomato basil pesto has a unique Mediterranean taste to dress up toast, chicken, and everything in between.

“A rose by any other name would smell as sweet” is one of Shakespeare’s famous lines, from Romeo and Juliet.

It always seemed to be that way to me, especially when it comes to people and their names. I was never able to understand how someone could ‘look like’ a name. Maybe it’s similar to the chicken or the egg debate, but I believed that personality shapes others’ perceptions of your name, not the other way around.

When people hear “Sara,” it’s logical that they subconsciously conjure up representations of who I am. But I can’t understand what people who don’t know me mean when they learn my name and simply say “Oh, that’s not what I would have guessed. You strike me as more of a Charlotte.”

Um, thanks?

Recently, I heard of a study that analyzes this very phenomenon and came to an unexpected conclusion. Due to cultural norms and associations that we make, people are  surprisingly capable of assigning the proper name to a face of a stranger. At the same time, we tend to mold our appearance to those same norms, increasing the manifestation of our name in our face.

It’s not completely accurate, and there are countless times when you may think that, for some inexplicable reason, a person looks more like a David than a Jake, or a Jackie than an Elizabeth. I’m still just mind blown that there’s actual proof of some credibility to claims that we look like a name.

Despite this, though, names can be misleading. Like when we call something a nut but it really isn’t one at all. Think of coconuts, water chestnuts, and… pine nuts?

Yup, you heard me. Pine nuts are a seed.

I feel like I need to reexamine the last 20 years of my life now, to uncover any other horrible misconceptions. That’s 20 years without knowing the greatness that is PESTO.

As soon as my younger brother passed along the information from the allergist, and Google confirmed it as true, I drove to the grocery store for ingredients. No more time would slip through my fingers before our food processor would lose its pesto-making-virginity.

For those who know me, I’m a firm believer in going big or going home. Be it work, relationships with people, hobbies, you name it, it’s important for me to feel that I’m giving it my all. Diving into the deep end, where I’m forced to swim.

Which is precisely why settling for regular pesto wasn’t an option. It was begging for a pinch of complication, a dash of complexity. A pop of color to bring out all its glory.

You may want to sit down before sneaking a taste.

Toast with sun-dried tomato basil pesto and a poached egg

And then quickly jump up, impatiently make a piece of toast, and drown it in the best pesto you’ve never found in a store.

Plan to make this? Had it already? Got questions or comments? If you’re thinking it, I want to hear it. Leave feedback below or tag @lensesandlentils on Instagram to share!

Sun-dried Tomato Basil Pesto

 

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Author: Sara

Recipe type: Dips, Sauces, & Spreads

Serves: 1 cup

Ingredients

• 1 cup fresh basil, tightly packed
• ⅔ cups sun-dried tomatoes
• ½ cup raw pine nuts
• 6-8 cloves garlic
• 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 1 tsp onion powder
• ½ tsp salt
• black pepper

Instructions

1. Add all ingredients to a food processor or high-speed blender.
2. Continue processing, scraping down the sides as necessary, until fully combined and has a smoother consistency. Adjust seasonings to taste
3. Store in the refrigerator for up to 10 days in an airtight container, with a thin layer of oil on top. Or, store in the freezer and thaw before using.**

Notes

* Add water 1 tsp at a time to make it thinner (more like a sauce than a spread).

** Pesto thaws fairly quickly. You may need to stir it to reincorporate any of the oil that has separated out before using.

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