Hi Friends,

This week’s a short one, as I have to get back to studying for the GRE, which I will be taking on Wednesday morning.  This week I’ve been craving the comfort foods courtesy of my long days of studying.  My favorite comfort food in Berkeley is Cheeseboard.  For those who’ve never heard of Cheeseboard, Cheeseboard is the crème de la crème of Bay Area pizza, emerging from the ovens of The Cheese Board Collective which started as a small cheese cooperative in North Berkeley in the 1960s.  Every day they make only one flavor of pizza and people line up down the block to buy a slice or a pizza.  The pizzas all come with a delightful super secret cilantro sauce, which seems to go with every single flavor they make.  All the ingredients are incredibly fresh, locally sourced, and seasonal, which makes for an unbelievable culinary experience.

Unfortunately for me, Cheeseboard does not exist in San Diego, where I am currently studying, so I had to make my own pizza and special cilantro sauce.  This sauce should in no way be compared with the Cheeseboard sauce; however, it is fair to say that I made an unbelievable cilantro pesto which I discovered goes well with everything from pizza to breakfast burritos.  Enjoy!

Cilantro Red Pepper Pesto

Ingredients:

• 1 large bunch cilantro
• 1 tsp. Salt
• 1 garlic clove
• 3 tbs olive oil
• 1 tsp. Red Pepper Flakes (more if you want more heat)
• juice of two small limes
• touch of apple cider vinegar (about a tsp)

Directions:

Place all ingredients in a food processor.

Process on high until smooth.

Spread on everything savory from breakfast burritos to pizza, or drizzle over a salad.