Versitile pesto that pops

whole wheat spinach & ricotta raviolis with pepita pesto

 

 

In our spare time, my friend Carrie & I have been cooking up a storm. She lives in San Francisco while I live in Oklahoma City. We share many things in common especially our love for food. Not to mention both of us have sizable cookbook collections. Last November we decided to put our overlapping cookbooks to the test. Each month we pick one cookbook that both of us own and cook from it. When we run out of overlapping cookbooks, we will alternate cooking from our own personal favorites. We choose 4-6 recipes per cookbook, compare notes along the way, take photos and discuss overall our likes, dislikes & adaptations we have made. Though we can't taste each other's creations, we are doing something delicious with the stacks of inspiration that line both of our kitchen walls.

This month we are finding inspiration from Heidi Swanson's Super Natural Everyday. I have blogged about her oat cakes before. Her popular blog has produced two delightful vegetarian cookbooks. Though I am not a vegetarian, I love eating like one most days of the week. Here's an easy pesto that will add pop to any pasta, soup, sandwich or scrambled egg dish you whip up in your own kitchen. Happy cooking & sharing with those near and far!


Pumpkin Seed Pesto

1 cup toasted pepitas (green pumpkin seeds found in most grocery store bulk bins)
1 bunch clean cilantro leaves & trimmed stems
2 cloves garlic, peeled but left whole
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese (leave it out to make this a vegan pesto)
Juice of 1 lemon
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1 small serrano chile, halved & de-seeded*
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil

Instructions:
Place all of the prepped ingredients in a blender or food processor except the olive oil. Pulse your machine a few times before letting the motor run. With the motor running, slowly drizzle in the olive oil. Continue to blend until smooth, stopping to scrap down the sides as needed. Add up to an additional 1/3 cup of olive oil if needed. Taste and adjust seasoning with additional salt or lemon juice. Recommended uses: salad dressing, pesto for pasta, a spread on sandwiches, as a garnish for soup or mixed in with scrambled eggs.

Keep pesto stored in a jar in refrigerator for up to 2 weeks.

Recipe slightly adapted from Super Natural Everyday

Note: to toast pepitas (pumpkin seeds), evenly spread them on a hot skillet, shaking every few seconds until they start to brown on all sides & pop.
*if you have disposable latex gloves, wear them while taking the ribs & seeds out. The heat will otherwise stay on your hands for a few hours.) A jalapeño would work here too.