Pesto

Pesto, is a sauce originating in Genoa, Italy. It traditionally consists of crushed garlic, pine nuts, coarse salt, basil leaves, hard cheese such as Parmigiano-Reggiano or Pecorino Sardo, all blended with olive oil. 

I love to have Pesto in my fridge to use as a dip, a marinade for chicken or fish, a pasta sauce, or simply used as a garnish to top grilled vegetables or soup. Pesto also freezes well!

I like to make different versions of this flavourful sauce. Today I received some fresh carrot tops and local garlic scapes from my Choi farmers box. They smelled so fresh and amazing I could not resist them. Yay pesto!

Here are my recipes for both of these tasty pestos!

Carrot Top Pesto

If you get your carrots from the farmers market and they are organic, then don’t throw the tops into the compost, make pesto with them.

Ingredients

• 1 cup organic carrot top greens
• 1 cup organic baby spinach
• 2 large cloves garlic
• 1/2 cup almonds (or pine nuts)
• 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
• Splash of lemon
• Salt and Pepper

Preparation

1. Rinse the carrot top greens thoroughly and dry them. Discard any tough stems.
2. Clean baby spinach and dry thoroughly.
3. Chop garlic very fine.
4. Put all ingredients in the food processor except the olive oil.
5. Pulse ten times or so until combined.
6. Add the olive oil gradually, a little at a time, continue pulsing until it becomes a creamy paste.
7. Add a splash of lemon, salt and pepper. Taste then adjust your seasoning.

Garlic Scape Pesto

Garlic scapes are the tender curly flower stalks from hardneck garlic, and taste milder than garlic cloves.  They are delicious and I love making pesto with them.

Ingredients

• 1 cup coarsely chopped garlic scapes
• 1/2 cup pine nuts ( I used macadamia and almond nuts)
• 1/2 cup olive oil
• Juice of 1/2 a lemon
• 1/3 cup grated parmigiana reggiano cheese
• Salt and Pepper

Preparation

1. Put garlic scapes, nuts, lemon and salt and pepper (pepper liberally) in a food processor. Pulse for about 10 times or so, until combined.
2. Add olive oil gradually, a little at a time, continue pulsing until the pesto is a creamy paste.
3. Transfer the pesto to a bowl and stir in the grated cheese.