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Carrot Greens Pesto

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Sweet and grassy carrot greens make a highly nutritious topping for pasta, roasted or grilled carrots, roasted potatoes, and a lovely dip for crisp raw veggies.

  • Author: Mary Leir
  • Prep Time: 10
  • Cook Time: 10
  • Total Time: 20 minutes
  • Yield: 4 Servings 1x
  • Category: Sauce
  • Method: Blend
  • Cuisine: Italian

Ingredients

Scale
  • 4 medium cloves garlic
  • 1/2 cup pecans
  • 1/2 teaspoon smoked coarse sea salt
  • 4 tablespoons nutritional yeast
  • 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper (optional)
  • 3 – 5 ounces carrot greens
  • 2 tablespoons mildly flavored extra-virgin olive oil
  • 2 tablespoons avocado oil
  • 1 tablespoon lemon juice (more to taste)
  • salt and pepper

Instructions

  1. Sort through carrot greens and get rid of any funky looking ones. Wash thoroughly. Shake off excess water.
  2. If you are blanching the leaves, immerse them in into boiling water until they turn bright green (about 1 minute). I like to hold the stems to keep the green goodness from leaching into the water, especially if I’m making pasta for the pesto. By holding the stems, I can pull the greens out of the water and immerse in cold water quickly and without having to dump out the hot water. But be very careful if you blanch using this method. Once cool, pat or shake dry.
  3. Strip small “leaves” off of the center stem and set aside.
  4. Using a cast iron skillet, toast garlic cloves and pecans over low to medium heat until fragrant. Stir often to prevent burning.
  5. Transfer warm nuts and garlic to food processor. Add salt, nutritional yeast, and red pepper flakes (if using). Blend until finely ground. Now is the time to divide the mixture in half if making only two servings (see notes).
  6. Add carrot greens, olive oil, avocado oil and lemon juice. Blend until a smooth texture has been achieved. You want more of an almost pourable sauce and not a thick paste (for pasta). Make thicker for spreading on bread or toast.
  7. Taste and add more salt, pepper, or lemon juice if needed. Add more greens and / or oil to achieve a smooth consistency.
  8. Spoon pesto over warm pasta and serve with fresh ground pepper and more red pepper flakes.
  9. Extra pesto can be transferred to a jar or container, pressed to remove any air bubbles or gaps, covered with a small layer of olive oil, sealed, and refrigerated overnight.

Notes

  • If you love fresh pesto, but hate left over pesto because the greens have turned a bit gray, blend the toasted nuts, nutritional yeast, garlic, and salt together and divide in half. Save one half for making a fresh batch of pesto later with fresh greens.
  • Never heat pesto. This makes it loose it’s fresh, green taste. Toss it with warm pasta in a serving bowl, not in a pan over heat.
  • I like to heat the garlic with the nuts to take a bit of the raw garlic edge off. Place the raw garlic right in the food processor if you want a stronger raw garlic flavor.

Keywords: Easy, Pasta, Greens

Find it online: http://shiftycrafty.com/carrot-greens-pesto/