Pesto Party

Ah, I remember summer like it was only a few weeks ago, and in fact it was only a few weeks ago that I was enjoying the best fruits of summer in Paraguay. In January in particular there are really amazing pineapples, melons, and mangoes. If you think you are a fan of pineapple--or if you think you are not for the matter--you really ought to go to paraguay. I have never anywhere in my life tasted such amazingly juicy, sweet, and perfect pineapple as in
Paraguay. It has absolutely nothing in common with the sour cardboard that passes for pineapple in the U.S.

In December, David, having missed out on the pesto season in the U.S., made me purchase five huge bunches of basil. The resulting pesto was too much to possibly use before it went bad so we had a week or two where everyday we tried to find some use for it. Utlmately we did have to throw some out, but here are some of the meals we made from it:

Pesto crusted with leeks, yard-long beens and ginger. It was so long ago now, i don't remember too many details, but I really love yard-long beans and am really happy they are available at the agro-shopping in Paraguay. They are denser and less watery than green beans and seem to have a more concentrated, greener flavor.
This gnocchi with asparagus, oyster mushrooms, and pesto was really excellent. Mushrooms have been available pretty regularly at the agrofair and sometimes even at the supermarket, which is a very recent and big development. Until very recently, only canned or jarred mushrooms were available in Paraguay.
We also made this pizza out of some dough we had frozen, fresh mozzarella and some of the best tomatoes I've found in paraguay, and, of course, pesto instead of tomato sauce. There is fresh arrugula on top. We actually made some much better and more attractive pizzas during my families Christmas visit, we didn't take any pictures.