diet schmiet!: PASTA! I thought I'd never see you again...

After a few horrible interfaces with shiratake noodles - those weird tofu pasta wannabes that make me think I'm biting into little fingers - I thought my life with pasta was done. But, I finally followed through and ordered some FiberGourmet pasta - as recommended by Gundry himself in his book. This pasta is loaded with fiber, so doesn't have the same affect on your system that regular pasta does. The best part - it tastes like the real thing. You can buy a case (6 boxes) on the FiberGourmet website or you might get lucky and find it in some specialty grocery shops (for any of you in the Los Angeles area, Erewhon carries it).

Be aware though - it still is pasta and has a bunch of carbohydrates, so think of this as a treat rather than a weekday staple. And, as always, watch your portion sizes. Allow yourself about a cup of cooked pasta and supplement your meal with a salad or other veggies.

On our inaugural trip with this pasta, I decided to make a homemade pesto. I served the pasta with a few halved cherry tomatoes and topped it with a slice of delicious burrata cheese.

The basic pesto recipe is below (courtesy of Giada de Laurentiis), but when it comes to pesto, you can be very creative. You can really use whatever herbs or nuts you like.

I used a mix of basil, parsley and oregano from the lovely, little "herb barrels" that my wonderful husband planted and I used a mix of nuts that I had on hand with hazelnuts, pistachios and macadamias. If you prefer, you can omit the nuts all together. You can also play with additional flavors and ingredients - asparagus, avocado, sun dried tomato, squash, etc.

Basic Basil Pesto Recipe
2 cups packed, fresh basil
1/4 cup toasted pine nuts*
1 garlic clove
1/2 teaspoon salt (plus more to taste)
1/4 teaspoon ground pepper
2/3 cup extra virgin olive oil (approximately)
1/2 cup fresh, grated parmesan

Put all of the ingredients except the evoo and cheese in a food processor and whirl until finely chopped. Slowly add in the oil until the mixture is combined and smooth. Stir in the cheese by hand. *To toast the nuts, spread out on a cookie sheet and bake in a 350 degree oven for a few minutes until you can smell them roasting and they get a little golden.