A little bit of this...A little bit of that...

So, I had to take my daughter, Ariana out today for some art supplies for a Kite project she was working on for school.  While I was at Michael's, I decided to buy some canvases for this Photo Mod Podge project I was going to work on with the kids pictures.  Click here for a tutorial of this project which my friend Leisa and her sister came up with on their blog The Sassy Pepper http://thesassypepper.blogspot.com/2010/11/mod-podge-photos-on-canvas.html.  They are so creative.  And, since I was at Michael's, I decided to buy some spray paint for my bamboo candle plates in my living room and for my basket on top of my cabinets.  I wanted to make them both a reddish wine color.

Bamboo Candle Plates Before...

Bamboo Candle Plate after with Candle (Red Wine color)

Dinner was a success!!!

And after I painted the candle plates and my basket, I decided to try a new recipe for dinner.  I saw a little blurb in Better Homes and Garden this month about trying a Pea Pesto Sauce instead the regular pesto with pine nuts to cut out fat and reduce calories.  They didn't list any measurements at all, but it listed the ingredients, so I decided to give it a whirl.  This is what I came up with.  

So here is the recipe in case any of you were interested in trying it.  You can make this strictly vegetarian style and drop in some peas to add color, or add chicken.  

Pea Pesto Sauce with Pasta and Chicken 

1 bag frozen peas (thawed but I heated them up too)

1 - 2 cloves of garlic minced

1 - 2 tablespoons of fresh basil 

1-2 small lemons juiced 

1/2 teaspoon salt 

dash of pepper

1/4 cup of shredded parmesan cheese (not pantry style)

olive oil

So while I was boiling my pasta, I whipped up this pesto sauce in my food processor.  If you don't have a food processor, you can always use your blender.

Add all ingredients except the olive oil.  Puree and gradually add olive oil until smooth and creamy. You will want to add enough olive oil until you reach the consistency of thick spaghetti sauce.  Once the pasta is done, drain it and toss with this pesto.  I added cubed chicken which I also cooked while waiting for the water to boil. 

The kids were a little surprised with their green pasta, but they all went back for seconds and so did Dan.  I was good and stuck to my one serving.

Try it, you might like it...  Happy Eats!