Community Magazine July 2016

*Let’s get real! Washing and checking a lot of basil is very rewarding (nothing is like fresh basil), but it's lots of work. In this recipe, you can use 12 frozen basil cubes instead. *I like to prep as many steps ahead of time, so there’s less ingredients and less of a mess to make on the day I’m entertaining. When I’m serving this pasta salad, I’ll combine the olive oil, lemon juice, basil, garlic, salt, and pepper together ahead of time to make a dressing. Then I’ll boil the pasta fresh and add avocado and Parmesan. You can also toss the whole dish together and simply add the avocado when ready to serve. It’s good whether warm, cold, or at room temperature. *Your avocados should be pretty ripe so they mix in with the pasta and create the creamy texture you want in a dairy pasta dish. Bonus! My Avocado Cream Sauce: A Dreamy Weeknight Pasta Dish This sauce only takes a minute and is prepared in the blender: that’s perfect for spring and summer evenings when you don’t want more heat in the kitchen. I like to serve it with a fettuccine or linguine pasta and top it with a mango or peach salsa ( just add some lime juice, diced red onion, salt, and pepper to your diced fruit). 3 garlic cloves 3 tablespoons olive oil Juice of 3 limes 2 ripe avocados ¼ cup milk or heavy cream ¼ cup fresh basil, loosely packed (4-5 cubes) Salt and pepper, to taste ¼ cup Parmesan cheese 1. In a blender, blend garlic with olive oil and lime juice. Add avocados, milk, basil, salt and pepper. Blend until smooth. 2. Toss with freshly prepared pasta and top with Parmesan cheese. Serve immediately with peach or mango salsa (see note above). Yield: serves 4 to 5 Victoria Dwek is the author of six cookbooks, including Secret Restaurant Recipes and the Made Easy Cookbook series. She’s the editor of the popular food magazine Whisk, published weekly by Ami Magazine. Each week, she brings Breadberry customers into her home kitchen through Breadberry Taste, where she shares exclusive tips. She’s available to Breadberry customers for cooking questions and menu advice at victoria@breadberry.com SIVAN - TAMUZ 5776 JULY 2016 63