Sun-Dried Tomato and Artichoke Pesto

As I mentioned yesterday, it's the last week before payday. This is actually the best time in the Kittchen, because it forces me to be a bit more creative with what I have at home than I tend to be when I have the funds to go to the grocery store and buy whatever strikes my fancy (some day, somehow, I will get around to making a plan for the week before I go to the grocery store...but that day is not today).

Here's a snack I made for myself after concocting my latest low-budget creation: a gluten free (yet delicious) brown rice cracker (I've become addicted to these things since the elimination diet), some sun-dried tomato and artichoke pesto, and a carrot chip (mostly for color).

I call this a pesto because it contains pine nuts, and because, as Mark Bittman points out in his asparagus pesto recipe, the word "pesto" really just means paste.

Sun-Dried Tomato and Artichoke Pesto

• 1 cup (roughly 15) sun-dried tomatoes
• 1 can artichoke hearts, roughly chopped
• 1/3 cup pine nuts
• 3 cloves garlic, roughly chopped
• 1/4 cup plus 1/3 cup olive oil
• 1 tbsp. tomato paste
  
• Salt and pepper to taste

1. Heat the 1/4 cup of olive oil in medium pan over medium-high heat. Once the oil is hot, add the sun-dried tomatoes and allow them to cook for about five minutes before adding the artichokes.



2. Once the sun-dried tomatoes have softened up a bit (5-7 minutes), add the pine nuts, garlic, salt and pepper, and allow the mixture to cook until the pine nuts are toasted.




3. Adding the 1/3 cup of olive oil and the tomato paste, blend ingredients in a food processor for about two minutes, until it becomes a smooth paste.





This pesto is fantastic as a dip or mixed in with rice, and I'm going to try it in a wrap (I found gluten free tortillas at Whole Foods!) tonight, with deli turkey, sliced cucumber, and fresh herbs.

My next huge project is gluten free, dairy free enchiladas (inspired by some glutinous, dairy-laden enchiladas my roommate made on Sunday night). I'm going to have to rely on a fantastic sauce and really tasty chicken in order to make up for the lack of cheese...the enchilada sauce recipe hunt has already begun!