Kale Pesto Recipe

What happens when that pesto craving hits, but your window-box is bare and the market only has sad limp little bouquets of basil? Get creative.

It turns out you can make pesto out of just about anything.

What I love to do is pick greens that are at their peak, pair them with a nut (usually not the traditional and high-priced pine nut), and blend into pesto with parmesan cheese, olive oil, lemon juice, plus salt and pepper. It's that easy.

Come fall and winter, there are not a ton of local in-season greens, but kale usually looks pretty perky and is a great ingredient for this kale pesto recipe.

You can adapt this kale pesto recipe in spring with spinach, a mix of greens in summer -- broccoli even! -- and once fall and winter come around again try all those hearty greens like kale, chard, collards and rapini.

Kale Pesto Recipe

    Prep Time: 15 minutes

    Cook time: 15 minutes

    Yield: Makes 1 1/2 cups, enough for 6-8 servings of pasta

Kale Pesto Ingredients

    1/2 cup chopped walnuts

    8 ounces kale, trimmed, rinsed and chopped

    1 cup shredded Parmesan cheese

    1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil

    4 cloves garlic, chopped

    2 teaspoons lemon juice

    1 teaspoon salt

    1/2 teaspoon pepper

Kale Pesto Recipe Instructions

    Preheat the oven to 350 F.

    Spread the nuts in a single layer on a rimmed baking sheet and roast them in the oven until they are golden and fragrant, about 10 minutes

    Meanwhile, bring a large pot of salted water to boil.

    Have a large bowl of cold water ready. Drop the chopped kale into the boiling water. When the water returns to a boil, swirl the kale around a few times until it becomes limp.

    Drain the kale and plunge it into the cold water. Drain again, then place the kale on a clean dishtowel and blot away the moisture.

    Place the nuts, kale, Parmesan, olive oil, garlic, lemon juice, salt and pepper in a blender and puree until uniformly smooth. You may need to add more olive oil to reach desired consistency.

    To refrigerate, cover with plastic wrap directly on the surface of the pesto. Will stay fresh for up to 3 days.

    To freeze, place desired portions in small containers with plastic directly on the surface of the pesto, or place in plastic freezer bags, and freeze for up to two months.

Kale Pesto Recipe, Pesto Recipe, Italian

 

Subscribe to Receive our Gourmet Recipes


Kale Pesto - A Pesto Recipe for Fall & Winter

World-renowned chefs with an extraordinary passion for food share their passion on iHaveNet.com. These chefs make great cooking easier than imagined. Each gourmet recipe features expert advice and an easy-to-make recipe. Exactly what you need to transform your home cooking from acceptable to delectable

© Tribune Media Services

 

 

 

Explore Easy-to-make Gourmet Recipes