The Yummy Librarian

I’m celebrating my birthday this week, it’s been pretty awesome to receive so much specifically focused love from my family and friends.  One of the things I did for my birthday was share all the love I felt with two food based charities.  I actually decided that I wanted to give and not just receive on my birthday when I was driving home from work last week, trying to decide what I wanted for dinner.  And while I was hungry, I occurred to me that I have never really ever been seriously hungry.  I had the fortune to grow up with parents that always made sure I knew where my next meal was coming from.  I was never punished by being sent to bed with out dinner, I feel I had a healthy balance of junk for and the stuff that’s good for you, and when I didn’t want to eat what was on my plate I wasn’t told about the hungry children in another country - I was told about the kids here.  And while as a kid I didn’t  have an appreciation for this as and adult I do.  16 million children in this country are in food insecure situations.  16 MILLION!  Most of them receive food through school lunch programs and SNAP (the supplemental nutritional assistance program) which is on the list of government programs slated for cuts.  Is it a perfect program, no, but it’s a first line of defense to prevent children and their families from being hungry.

I’m asking for your help on this birthday week of mine, please consider making a donation to your local food bank, a national or international food related charity; and if so inclined contact your local members of congress to tell them not to cut funding to SNAP.  You can find out more information from the No Kid Hungry website.

I do genuinely try not to get political on this blog, but I think we can all agree, or mostly agree, that hungry kids are a bad thing.

According to the song I should totally be in a funk, but I like rain days and I have the day off so I’m all smiles today. (I will totally annoy everyone when I go to the grocery store later).

If you are not a lover of rainy days or Mondays; or the continuing less than spring-like weather might I suggest you make yourself some pesto and wait it out.  I don’t know, pesto is my woman declaration of spring, it is just a perfect spring food item and its so simple to make there’s absolutely no reason to buy the prepackaged stuff.

So for everyone that’s longing for a little bit of spring, I present PESTO!

1 to 2 cups fresh basil leaves

1 to 2 cloves garlic

¼ cup pine nuts (or walnuts)

¼ c pecorino romano (or parmesan) cheese

Olive Oil

Salt and pepper to taste

In a food processor (you can use a blender if you don’t have one) combine basil, garlic, pine nuts and cheese with about ¼ cup olive oil and a pinch of salt and pepper.  Continue to add oil until pesto is well combined and smooth.

Add to hot pasta or over chicken. 

No worries if its too much pesto for one night, it can also be frozen.

 According to the song I should totally be in a funk, but I like rain days and I have the day off so I’m all smiles today. (I will totally annoy everyone when I go to the grocery store later).

If you are not a lover of rainy days or Mondays; or the continuing less than spring-like weather might I suggest you make yourself some pesto and wait it out.  I don’t know, pesto is my woman declaration of spring, it is just a perfect spring food item and its so simple to make there’s absolutely no reason to buy the prepackaged stuff.

So for everyone that’s longing for a little bit of spring, I present PESTO!

 1 to 2 cups fresh basil leaves

1 to 2 cloves garlic

¼ cup pine nuts (or walnuts)

¼ c pecorino romano (or parmesan) cheese

Olive Oil

Salt and pepper to taste

In a food processor (you can use a blender if you don’t have one) combine basil, garlic, pine nuts and cheese with about ¼ cup olive oil and a pinch of salt and pepper.  Continue to add oil until pesto is well combined and smooth.

Add to hot pasta or over chicken. 

No worries if its too much pesto for one night, it can also be frozen.