Chef Jamie's Roasted Artichoke Pesto

Delicious as a spread, dip, or topping

Chef Jamie says: Use this delicious pesto as a spread on crostini, as a dip, on a baked potato, as a topping for fish or chicken and for so much more.

This recipe makes 2 cups.

Roasted Artichoke Pesto ingredients:
1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
3 large cloves garlic, sliced
4 sprigs fresh thyme
2 cups artichoke hearts - frozen, canned or drained from the jar
1 whole lemon; cut in half
1/2 cup tightly packed fresh basil leaves
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
Salt and pepper, to taste

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 325°F.
In a roasting pan, combine 1/4 cup olive oil, the garlic slices and thyme sprigs.
Add the artichokes and squeeze the lemon juice over them, throwing the lemon halves into the roasting pan, after juicing.

Season with salt and pepper and toss to combine the ingredients.
Cover the pan with aluminum foil, and roast for 15 minutes. Remove the foil, toss the mixture and return it to the oven, without the foil cover.

Roast for another 15 minutes, then remove the pan from the oven and allow the artichokes to cool in the liquid.
Remove the thyme sprigs and lemon halves from the roasting pan and discard.

Combine the artichokes, with their liquid, basil leaves, Parmesan cheese and the remaining olive oil in a food processor. Blend until pureed. Adjust the seasoning and store in the fridge until ready to use.

Jamie Gwen is a Celebrity Chef, Certified Sommelier, Lifestyle Expert and four-time Cookbook Author.For the past 13 years, she has brought the best to radio with her weekly Live Radio Show filled with delicious conversation, heard every Sunday from 8:00am to 10:00am on KFWB News Talk 980 in Southern California and heard worldwide on iTunes and the Internet.

Jamie can also be heard on Martha Stewart Living Radio on Sirius/XM and she can be seen stirring up something delicious on television shows and in print nationwide.

Jamie’s most recent cookbook entitled “Good Food For Good Times 2” is now available as an eBook and has been featured on Emeril Live, Martha Stewart and QVC. She is a graduate of The Culinary Institute of America and her website, www.chefjamie.com, is a scrumptious resource for food lovers everywhere.

Recipe Courtesy of Jamie Gwen, 2012