Pesto Vinaigrette

The other day I made this pesto vinaigrette. It has reflamed my love of pesto, which was hiding in shame from an unintentional snub. Dare I remind us of the time, not so long ago, when pesto covered every food known to man. Can you blame me for such neglect?

Has pesto gone the way of Cosmopolitans? I hope not because I like pesto more than a Cosmo.
Make this soon and use it on vegetables, warm roasted potatoes, a steak salad and a cool summer pasta salad.

Pesto Vinaigrette
makes 1/2 cup
Prep time: 2 minutes
Cook time: 0

* 1 1/2 tablespoons prepared basil pesto
* 1 tablespoon honey
* 3 tablespoons olive oil, extra-virgin preferred
* 1 tablespoon champagne or white wine vinegar
* salt & pepper to taste

I put everything into a container, snapped on a lid and shook. The pesto and honey will act as an emulsifier, so if it's too thick to drizzle, add more vinegar. I bet after you make this vinaigrette you will keep a container of pesto in your freezer (measured into small condiment cups) so that the next time you grill vegetables you will have it on hand. Something so simple, can only be wonderful and this does not taste like pesto straight up. I can guarantee non pesto people will love this, and the rest of us, will love it once again.

Avocado Crema

I know it's an oxymoron and I try not to do it but I just made a wonderfully healthy tequila avocado crema that works well in so many applications.
So what's the oxymoron in that statement?

Well, my crema is a margarita crema made with tequila and cointreau and those two ingredients with the word healthy makes it an oxymoron.
You could take out the Cointreau (or triple sec) and use orange zest but I don't think there is a substitute for tequila. On the bright side, did you know tequila has the least amount of carbs of all the liquors out there?

I am not going to change a thing. You shouldn't either. This is great on anything you would use sour cream and avocado on, like tacos, burritos, enchiladas, dips and a garnish for any southern style soup. It would make a hamburger sing and a steak whistle at the baked potato.
Plus it's a lovely shade of green.

Tequila Avocado Crema (make this and use it on everything):
makes 1 cup

Puree in a blender
* 1/2 ripe avocado
* 1/4 cup cottage cheese
* 2 tablespoons sweet and sour mix
* 1 tablespoon each Cointreau and Tequila
* Salt & pepper
* Dash milk to thin