Pesto is always so flavorful! It's such a great kind of sauce to use for all kinds of things from pastas, salad, sandwiches, and the list goes on. The downside is that it normally contains a lot of oil, a lot of unnecessary oil! It's usually olive oil, which isn't the worst considering what else they could use in the world of oils, but it's not the best for you either, so overdoing and having so much oil it separates is a bit extra.
The original do-it-yourself recipe I found for pesto came from the recipe booklet that came along with my Magic Bullet. I thought, "Sweet! If I make my own, it'll be so much cheaper!!" I was a tad mistaken, given the cost of pine nuts...ridiculous cost for such a small amount of such a little nut...grr. Anyway, even though pine nuts definitely add great flavor and can really make the pesto, after my unfortunate expensive buy of a very tiny container of them, I decided I could use something else or just leave it out. Trust me when I say it still tastes just fine.
The original do-it-yourself recipe I found for pesto came from the recipe booklet that came along with my Magic Bullet. I thought, "Sweet! If I make my own, it'll be so much cheaper!!" I was a tad mistaken, given the cost of pine nuts...ridiculous cost for such a small amount of such a little nut...grr. Anyway, even though pine nuts definitely add great flavor and can really make the pesto, after my unfortunate expensive buy of a very tiny container of them, I decided I could use something else or just leave it out. Trust me when I say it still tastes just fine.
Healthier Spinach Pesto
Yields about 1 cup
Ingredients:
Directions:
Ingredients:
- 1 C spinach
- 1/4 C fresh parsley
- 1/8 C parmesan cheese, fresh grated, OR nutritional yeast
- 1-2 cloves garlic
- 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 1/8 tsp sea salt
- Splash of lemon juice
- Pepper, to taste
- Optional: Approx. 1/4 C walnuts or pine nuts, toasted
Directions:
- Throw everything into a Magic Bullet or small food processor and pulse until the consistency of pesto/paste.
- Taste and adjust seasonings to your desired taste.
- Transfer finished product to container to store, preferably glass. Keeps for weeks in the refrigerator.