Brown Sugar Caramel Sauce

A perfect dessert after a big meal or a nice afternoon snack with coffee, tea or

hot chocolate........vanilla ice cream with a rich, warm caramel sauce.  Bonus, it's a gluten free dessert if you choose the right vanilla ice cream.

1/2 cup salted butter

1/4 teaspoon salt

• 1 cup brown sugar (well packed)
• 2/3 cup heavy whipping cream, unwhipped (35% cream, no less! can use a little more cream)
• 2 -4 teaspoons vanilla extract (optional)
• Melt butter and add salt in a small saucepan.  Add the brown sugar.  Whisk until combined and thickened (about 2 minutes.  Whisk in the shipping cream, until thoroughly blended (2 more minutes).  Mix in vanilla until combined. The sauce will thicken up more when refrigerated.   (Yield 2 cups)
  
  
  

Barbara's Pesto

Ingredients

5-6 ounces (2 bunches or 6 cups) basil leaves

1/2 cup pine nuts

1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese

1-2 garlic cloves

1/4 tsp. salt

1/4-1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil

Blend half the basil with nuts, cheese, garlic cloves and salt in a food processor until finely chopped.  Scrape down the sides of the bowl and add the rest of the basil.  Blend until a uniform paste has formed.  Scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed.  With the food processor still running, stream in the olive oil (amount depending on the consistency you want).  

Pesto will darken and brown very quickly but will still be tasty and fresh for several days.  For best appearance, use it right away.  If storing, store it in the smallest container possible and thoroughly press the pesto to eliminate air pockets.  Pour a little olive oil over the surface, cover and refrigerate for up to a week.  Pesto can also be frozen for several months.

Barbara and I prepared our pesto at Barbara's Hawaiian getaway and as we didn't have a food processor, with a little creativity and tenacity we were successful with a small hand mixer/blender.

For a change, or depending on ingredients you have on hand, substitutions can be made.  The "main formula" includes  fresh green leafy greens (maybe baby spinach), a nut (walnuts), a hard cheese (asiago) and olive oil.