Roasted Vegetable and Pesto Pasta with Seared Scallops

One of the more versatile and flavorful sauces that you can make is pesto. Pesto is an italian sauce used on pasta, sandwiches, meats, fish, hors d'oeuvres, and anything else you can think of. Classic pesto recipes use basil and pine nuts as the main components, but you can use any herbs or greens you like such as cilantro, parsley, arugula, or even kale along with any type of nut. I've made pistachio cilantro and arugula and almond pestos, and any variation you make will have a different personality depending on which components you use. For a healthy pasta dish, I decided to make a basil pine nut AND walnut pesto (I know, I'm a wild man...) with roasted vegetables and seared scallops.

Closing Out Summer in the Hamptons

I can think of no better way to end summer than with good friends and good food. The last weekend before labor day, my girlfriend and I went out to Quogue in the Hamptons with some friends to visit our friend's parent's house. We had postponed the trip a week because of hurricane Irene, and the weather was perfect. We spent some time on the beach and relaxing by the pool, and when the evening rolled around, we were treated to a delicious dinner. To date, all of my posts have been made by me, but this was such a great meal in such a wonderful setting, that I wanted to feature my friend's parent's meal as a thank you for their impeccable hospitality.

Is that watermelon in a sandwich??

It sure is! I love the flavor of watermelon in the summer. It's a melon with such a sweet flavor and interesting mouthfeel. Whenever I have some watermelon, I'm instantly transported to somewhere near the beach (figuratively, otherwise I would be eating watermelon non-stop...) Watermelon is normally eaten in wedges or cut up pieces. For this meal, I wanted to use it in an unconventional way. I decided to pair the sweet watermelon with the salty, meatiness of sausages in a sandwich. To go alongside this unconventional sandwich pairing, I decided to make some fried zucchini to make a sandwich and some chips a truly unexpected meal.