Pine Nuts in a Grand Setting

Thursday, May 17, 2012

Looking for a pesto recipe? Try classic Genovese with basil and pine nuts or parsley-pistachio. And here’s a round-up of ten recipes featuring pesto with photos to inspire.

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I love traveling, but it does make writing harder than usual. I’ve been at the International Conference on Diet and Activity Methods in Rome at the Food and Agricultural Organization of the United Nations this week, a triannual meeting focused on how scientists measure food intakes and exercise behaviors. If you missed me desperately or felt you would have liked to know that sooner and/or or see other status updates and photos this week, please feel free to become a fan of my page on Facebook or follow me on Twitter. I do have a Roman tale to tell that I will write soon – it’s not food related, ironically – but in the meanwhile wanted to write a quick post to connect with you. I also have many other (nicer) pictures so perhaps I’ll make a slide show soon. I selected the two photos below to highlight both the Colosseum – I think that may be required if you’re writing about the Eternal City? – and Rome’s fabulous flora.

Misleading of its magnitude, the trees are *not* taller than the Colosseum. They don’t call it “Colosseum” for nothing, after all.

Isn’t that gorgeous? I love the Italian (Tuscan) Cypress (background) and European Umbrella Pine trees (foreground) that dot the Roman landscape and create a lovely adornment to the outer perimeter of this grand amphitheater. Indigenous to Mediterranean climes, the latter tree bears the pignoli (pine nut), a tasty little seed common in Italian cooking and my own Mediterranean-style diet. (Do toast them first – it brings out the flavor, as it does with any nut.) Earlier this week I enjoyed a salad of frisée, parmigiana, and pine nuts with rosemary-infused olive oil. (No food porn, sorry – I was at a reception and decided to eat it, not tweet it.)

Here’s a bit more perspective for you. And remember this is the *ruin* of this architectural masterpiece.

I must sign off for now but I really have been missing blogging terribly; I am blessed to have far more stories to tell than there is time to write. More to come soon, I hope. Until then, know how much I deeply appreciate each and every one of you who reads my blog. In no time at all, we’ll soon be making pesto together (updated: click here to watch my five-minute pesto-making video) with summer-sweet basil, pignolis, parmigiana, and olive oil. I look forward to cooking again with you soon!

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Dr. P.K. Newby is a nutrition scientist, speaker, and author with expertise in all things food, farm to fork, whether preventing obesity and other chronic diseases through diet or teaching planet-conscious eating. As a health expert and food personality, she brings together her passions for food, cooking, science, and sustainability to educate and inspire, helping people eat their way towards better health, one delectable bite at a time. Healthy Hedonism (TM) is her philosophy: Because healthy food shouldn’t suck.

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