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Ricotta Pesto

August 15, 2013 · by Ari ·

Ricotta Pesto

Ever since I was little and my dad used to take me out for Italian food a minimum of two nights per week, I have been obsessed with pesto sauce. Sure, during my teens and early 20’s I was always ordering whatever came with alfredo sauce, but my dad’s a real good sharer, and he would always give me a little plate of his pesto sauce. I considered this the “healthy” sauce because it was green and there was no cream.

Ricotta Pesto

Well, pesto sauce although loaded with healthy fats from the olive oil and pine nuts, is still incredibly calorie dense. Especially if you’re me and you like a side of pasta with your sauce. It’s funny that adding extra cheese actually makes this sauce lower in calories and fat. I can’t argue that it’s necessarily “healthier” than traditional pesto, but it makes me feel a little better about the whole thing. 😉

Ricotta Pesto

Not to mention it is ridiculously good. In fact, I think I even like it more than a traditional pesto. The ricotta cheese makes it thick and creamy–perfect for lasagna, calzones or pizza (coming soon…). It’s great with pasta too, or just as a dipping sauce for veggies. Or, you know, a spoon. It’s ridiculously easy to make and comes together in about 3 minutes flat. Yes, 3 minutes. Of course depending on how quick and nimble your food processor is, but it makes creating a dish with it a total breeze!

Print
Ricotta Pesto

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Total Time: 5 minutes

Yield: approx 1 cup

Ricotta Pesto

Ingredients

  • 2 cups packed fresh basil
  • 2 cloves garlic
  • 1/2 cup pine nuts
  • 1/2 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese
  • 1/3 cup low fat (or part skim) ricotta cheese
  • 1/3 cup olive oil

Instructions

  1. Place basil, garlic, pine nuts, and cheeses in food processor and blend. Slowly, stream in olive oil until everything comes together to form a thick sauce. If sauce is too thick for your taste, stream in a little more olive oil. Store in an airtight container for 3-5 days.

Notes

Lightly adapted from Rachael Ray

3.1
https://arismenu.com/ricotta-pesto/

Filed Under: Gluten-free, Sauces & Spreads · Tagged: basil, cheese, gluten free, italian, pesto, recipe, ricotta

Sun-dried Tomato & Basil White Bean Burgers {vegan + gluten-free}

May 1, 2013 · by Ari ·

Healthy, vegan, gluten-free and full of flavor, these sun-dried tomato & basil white bean burgers taste like pizza in a burger! So delicious even meat eaters will crave them.

Sun-dried Tomato & Basil White Bean Burgers #vegan #glutenfree via arismenu.com

You guys, it is suddenly HOT here in Phoenix. Like, over 100* and I’m wondering what the H happened to spring, and I want a do-over kind of hot. Gross.

Sun-dried Tomato & Basil White Bean Burgers #vegan #glutenfree via arismenu.com

Somehow I have all these fond memories of last summer feeling all “I love summer! Summer is awesome!” mixed in with “Why did I ever make the CHOICE to run when it is 100* at 5am?!?! *&$#*&!!!”

Sun-dried Tomato & Basil White Bean Burgers #vegan #glutenfree via arismenu.com

Oh yeah, it’s because summer means swimming and barbecuing and an excuse to eat burgers every single night while you lounge by the pool with a margarita in hand. Now that sounds like something I remember loving.

Sun-dried Tomato & Basil White Bean Burgers #vegan #glutenfree via arismenu.com

Well it’s only the beginning of May, and since the temps began to sore, I have made an embarrassing amount of burgers. Like, you will probably get tired of my 9 billion burger recipes by mid June, but I just can’t stop.

Sun-dried Tomato & Basil White Bean Burgers #vegan #glutenfree via arismenu.com

I end up making a lot of meat for dinner because, well, I live with a boy, and most boys love meat. Most boys probably also don’t prefer being called “boys” when they over over 30 years old, but that’s neither here nor there… Anyway, my husband is so lucky because I make him lots of meat, but every now and then I fool him by saying I’m making “burgers” and then I serve him something like this. And he can’t lie about how much he loves it because his plate is clean in about 4 seconds.

Sun-dried Tomato & Basil White Bean Burgers #vegan #glutenfree via arismenu.com

I actually made these for 3 of my favorite meat lovin’ boys to rave reviews! It almost tastes like pizza in a burger. The unmistakable sun-dried tomatoes give tons of flavor to the beans, and the basil adds a perfectly light freshness. I actually thought these were going to be a disaster. I kept staring at them thinking “They look soooo dry! What did I do wrong???” But looks can be deceiving because the texture was spot on–slightly crispy on the outside, and perfectly tender and that word that I hate (you know the one) on the inside.

Sun-dried Tomato & Basil White Bean Burgers #vegan #glutenfree via arismenu.com

I topped mine with fresh greens, sliced tomatoes, pesto and a little fresh mozzarella cheese. Obviously if you’re vegan, you’ll want to leave off the pesto and cheese, or find a vegan variety. I could have lived without the cheese, but the pesto definitely adds a special something, so I highly recommend finding one within your eating preferences.

 

Print
Sun-dried Tomato & Basil White Bean Burgers

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Cook Time: 10 minutes

Total Time: 15 minutes

Yield: 6 burgers

Serving Size: 1 burger

Sun-dried Tomato & Basil White Bean Burgers

Healthy, vegan, gluten-free and full of flavor, these sun-dried tomato & basil white bean burgers taste like pizza in a burger! So delicious even meat eaters will crave them.

Ingredients

  • 2 cans white kidney beans, drained and rinsed
  • 1/2 medium onion, roughly chopped
  • 3 cloves garlic
  • 1/2 cup sun-dried tomatoes (from a bottle packed in olive oil), patted dry
  • 4-5 medium basil leaves
  • pinch salt
  • pinch pepper
  • 1/3 cup almond meal
  • 1-2 tbsp olive oil

Instructions

  1. Place about 3/4 of the beans (eyeball it), onion, garlic, sun-dried tomatoes, basil, salt and pepper in your food processor. Blend for 30-45 seconds until combined. Transfer to a large mixing bowl. Stir in almond meal and remaining beans.
  2. Heat olive oil on a large skillet over medium heat. Form mixture into 6 patties and carefully transfer to the skillet. Cook for about 5-7 minutes until the bottom is browned and set. Very carefully flip and cook for an additional 4-6 minutes until the opposite side is browned and set as well. Serve immediately, or store refrigerated in an airtight container for up to 1 week.
3.1
https://arismenu.com/sun-dried-tomato-basil-white-bean-burgers-vegan-gluten-free/

Filed Under: Dinner, Entree, Gluten-free, Holiday & Seasonal, Lunch, Sandwiches, savory, Summer, Vegan, Vegetarian · Tagged: basil, burger, dinner, gluten free, lunch, recipe, tomato, vegan

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