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By · Filed Under: Nutrition DL

Zucchini Pasta with Vegan Pesto

Zucchini Pasta with Vegan Pesto from Small Eats

Step aside, grains and salad greens, zucchini is here. So often we can fall into the trap of just putting vegetables on a bed of grains or salad and calling it a day. I do it all the time! But not today. Today, the vegetable, our beloved zucchini, is the main attraction….

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By · Filed Under: Fall

Spicy Basil Sauce

smalleats-spicy-basil-sauce

Earlier this month, I was at the Patchwork Edible festival in Costa Mesa. Most of the time I was helping my good friends at Ticings with their booth, but towards the end of the day I walked around to see what else was there.

On that walk I met Mike, the owner of Savour This Sauce. He and his sister make great vegan, gluten-free, and fresh sauces that they’re starting to sell all around LA. I tried (then later bought) their Pistachio Mint Chutney, which I sampled on lettuce (rather than the same ol’ cracker).

I was really impressed with Mike’s passion for freshness, using the best ingredients possible, and also his bravery! He told me he and his sister had been making and selling the sauces for ten months. Ten months and they’re already in festivals, farmer’s markets, and brick and mortar shops. To me that takes bravery. Bravery to push yourself, to reach out to other people, to really hustle for what you believe in. I need some of that bravery.

His passion and great sauces inspired me to make a sauce of my own, which could be used for a lot of things. I slathered this Spicy Basil Sauce over some fish and broiled it, but you could mix it into your salad or vegetables, put it on top of eggs, pasta, other grains… the possibilities are endless.

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Spicy Basil Sauce

Ingredients

  • 2 bunches of basil (I used Thai basil, either will work), de-stemmed
  • 1-2 thai chilies
  • 3 cloves of garlic
  • 1/3 cup olive oil, more to thin if desired
  • salt, to taste

Instructions

In a food processor, add basil, chilies, and garlic. As food processor is running, pour the olive oil in. Let run until the sauce is finely chopped. Add salt to taste and add more olive oil if you prefer the sauce to have more liquid.