You can make pesto with just about any leafy herb. To begin with, you might like to make a combination of, say, basil and oregano to see if you like it. Or use a recipe like the one here: http://www.hugs.org/Oregano_Pesto.shtml Or here: http://www.recipetips.com/recipe-cards/t--2624/six-herb-pesto.asp Sage Pesto 1/2 cup fresh sage leaves 1 1/2 cups fresh parsley leaves 2 garlic cloves 1/2 cup pine nuts or walnuts 1/2 cup parmesan cheese 1/2 cup olive oil Combine sage, parsley, garlic, cheese, and nuts in a food processor. Process to mix. With machine running, slowly add the olive oil. Season to taste with salt and pepper and process to the desired consistency. Excellent tucked under the skin of chicken breasts or mixed with pine nuts and fresh bread crumbs and stuffed into game hens. Mint Pesto Brownies 6 tablespoons butter 60g unsweetened baking chocolate 1 cup sugar 2 eggs 1 teaspoon vanilla 1/2 cup flour 1/4 cup mint pesto Preheat oven to 180C. Lightly butter the bottom only of a 20cm square baking pan. Melt the butter and chocolate together until smooth. Stir in sugar. Beat in eggs and vanilla then lightly stir in the flour. Turn batter into prepared pan. Pipe lines of pesto going one direction and then run a knife through the lines in the opposite direction to swirl. Bake for about 25 minutes or until brownies begin to pull away from the sides of the pan. For best results, allow to cool completely before cutting. Mint Pesto: 1/2 cup macadamia nuts 2 cups fresh mint leaves, packed 1/3 cup honey 1 tablespoon vanilla In a food processor, briefly chop the nuts before adding the remaining ingredients. Puree until reduced to a paste. If not using right away, transfer to a glass container, lay plastic wrap over the top so it is touching thus keeping air from penetrating the pesto. Store in refrigerator for up to a month. Use as a filling for sandwich cookies or mix some into chocolate sauce for ice cream or cake. Serve pesto over vegetables, especially tomatoes, eggplant and zucchini. Use it as a sauce on meats and seafood. Add a little pesto to soups or cheese spreads. Toss pesto onto cooked pasta as a sauce. Add to the cheese filling in lasagne. Mix equal parts pesto with sour cream or plain yoghurt for a vegetable dip. Spoon some pesto onto a baked potato and top with extra Parmesan cheese Stir a little pesto into mashed potatoes along with a little warmed milk. Spread pesto on toasted bread and cover with tomato slices. Halve tomatoes and spread with pesto; let marinate for 1 hour; sprinkle with Parmesan cheese and eat cold or grill. Add pesto to mayonnaise or sour cream, use as a dressing for seafood, pasta or potato salads, as a dip, or topping for baked potato. Spread pesto on bottom crust for tomato tart, quiche or pizza. Add a dollop of pesto to omelettes or frittata. Stir a little pesto into a finished risotto. Stir a spoonful of pesto into vinaigrette for salad, or into dressing for grilled vegetables, bean salads. Stir a little pesto into soups such as minestrone, zucchini or lentil. Marinate chicken or lamb in 2 tablespoons pesto, 1 tablespoon lemon juice and pepper for about 2 hours; brush with additional marinade when grilling. Brush some pesto on refrigerated crescent rolls, roll up and bake. Use pesto to fill small mushroom caps, top with breadcrumbs and bake. There must be a squillion sites in WWW-land with assorted pesto recipes, and ways to use them. Like Marlingardener, I'm more of a herb butter fan. Try serving a herb butter on a steak!

This is one of those in a jar mixes that you can make up and give out as gifts. Or you can stock up your pantry with them. FRENCH MARKET SOUP IN A JAR Mix 1 pound dried navy beans 1 pound dried pinto beans 1 pound dried Great Northern beans 1 pound split peas 1 pound yellow split peas 1 pound dried black-eyed peas 1 pound lentils 1 pound dried baby lima beans 1 pound dried lima beans 1 pound dried soybeans 1 pound pearl barley 1 pound dried red beans In a very large container, combine navy beans, pinto beans, great Northern beans, split peas, yellow split peas, black-eyed peas, lentils, baby limas, limas, soybeans, barley and red beans; mix well. Divide evenly into 14 lidded jars. Attach a card to each jar with the following recipe: French Market Soup 2 quarts water 1 ham hock 1 1/4 teaspoons salt 1/4 teaspoon ground pepper 1 (16 ounce) can diced tomatoes with green chiles 1 large onion, chopped 1 clove garlic, minced Soak 2 cups French Market Bean Mix in water to cover, 8 hours or overnight. In a large soup pot, bring 2 quarts water and ham hock to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer 20 minutes. Remove ham hock. Stir in soaked beans, salt, pepper, diced tomatoes and green chiles, onion and garlic. Bring to a boil again, skimming foam off the top. Reduce heat, cover and simmer about 1 hour, until beans are tender.

Lori, those look yummy! Artichoke Heart And Red Pepper Bites ==================================== From Perfect Entertaining website. These simple appetizers are something that we always have on hand for surprise guests. They freeze extremely well, are very easy to make, and are always popular. They go together very well with the rest of this festive menu and require no preparation time at all on a very busy day. Simply defrost and eat! Makes 60 bites 6 ounces marinated artichoke hearts in oil 6 ounces roasted bell peppers 1 small chopped onion 2 minced cloves garlic 4 eggs 2 cups shredded Cheddar cheese 1/4 cup dry bread crumbs 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley Dash hot pepper sauce Freshly ground black pepper Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and grease an 8 inch baking dish. Drain the artichoke hearts, reserving 2 tablespoons of the oil. Drain the roasted peppers and discard the liquid. Finely chop the artichoke hearts and peppers and set aside. Heat a large skillet over medium heat. Add the reserved oil, onion, and garlic. Cook for five minutes, or until soft and translucent. Remove from the heat and cool slightly. Beat the eggs in a large bowl until thick and lemon colored. Beat in the remaining ingredients along with the artichoke hearts, peppers, and onion mixture. Pour into the prepared pan. Bake for 30 minutes, or until pale golden brown. Cool for 15 minutes, then cut into one inch squares. Tightly wrap and refrigerate for up to 2 days, or freeze for up to a month. Serve cold, at room temperature, or gently reheated in a 300 degree oven for 5-10 minutes.

Ann, try saving it to your Clippings. Look to the right of your last post (just above this). You will see the word Clippings in green letters. Under that it will say Clip This Post. For each recipe or comment you want to save, click on Clip This Post. Another way to do it is to highlight the entire thread, or the parts you want, right click with your mouse and then click on Copy. Start a new document in Word and paste the thread into that document, then save it to your computer. If you want me to do that for you and then email it to you, let me know.