"Rough" Pesto with Asparagus and Spinach, Leftover Green Tomato-Seitan with Madagascar Pink Rice

Tonight, I wanted to use up the leftover green tomato-seitan dish from a few nights ago; I heated it, along with the Madagascar pink rice. I also made an interesting and simple asparagus dish in a cast iron pan. I ran out of oil, so used some Earth Balance margarine.

I cut asparagus into maybe 1 1/2" lengths. I started sauteeing a large diced shallot, adding a large handful and a half (just a little at a time) of spinach a few minutes later. When the spinach was cooked down significantly, I added the asparagus and cooked for a few more minutes, then served.

I had forgotten to dollop on a little bit of a pesto variant that I had made last night, and added that after the first few bites. Yesterday, we took a supply of basil from a friend, and I intended to make pesto by blending the basil leaves with walnut, garlic, and olive oil. But I only had a little bit of olive oil left, so had a rather rough and not smooth sauce. But it tasted fine and actually complemented today's asparagus dish well.

Last night for the 4th of July, our vegetarian society had a potluck dinner. We also distributed vegetarian literature at a fun festival for the three days ending yesterday. After the dinner, we went out for fireworks, but they ended up being rained out, alas. Happy 4th of July!