Supergreen Kale and Pistachio Pesto {vegan}

This is one of the quickest and healthiest things I make, and it is ripe for adapting to your own taste. Perhaps play around with the ‘extra’ greens, as well as the nuts {I show images for both pistachios and cashews}; add cheese if you like {about 50 grams}; use all flaxseed for a bigger omega 3 hit – its strong taste melds right in and ‘plays nicely’ with the other ingredients. Just make it.

Ideas for what to do with kale pesto – beyond pasta – are below the recipe.

75g kale of any kind, or a mix

75g natural pistachios or cashews, soaked overnight if possible {to aid digestion/nutrition}

25g mix of fresh parsley {stems removed if quite ‘leggy’} and rocket/arugula

3 garlic cloves, skinned

Juice of one juicy lemon {about 2 ½ tbsp}

2 tbsp nutritional yeast OR 1 tbsp white miso paste – optional {for a cheesy taste I sometimes alternate between the two when I make this. On this occasion I left both out}

60-75ml extra virgin olive oil OR 35ml evoo and 35ml flax oil

1. Remove the tough ribs from the kale leaves. I do this by laying each piece flat and running a cook’s knife alongside each side of the rib. Chop the kale.

2. Heat just a few inches of water in a pan until boiling; add the kale pieces. Bring back to the boil then quickly drain {save the water} and rinse under running cold water. No need to give it an ice bath {this helps preserve the colour} but I do if I have the time. The cooking of the kale makes it a brighter green, a bit more digestible to some, and it also seems to make the pesto last longer without spoiling. But, use it raw if you wish. I use the kale water instead of extra oil to thin the pesto when adding a few tablespoons of pesto to cooked pasta. You could also pop it in a container and add it to a green smoothie the next day.

3. Drain the pistachios or cashews and add everything but half of the oil to a food processor or blender {like my beloved Froothie}, and pulse until you have a mostly smooth paste. You may need to stop and scrape down the sides of your blender or processor.

4. Scrape the pesto into a bowl and stir in the remaining oil to keep it fairly loose. Adding all of the oil at once makes it thicker and paler in colour, which is fine of course.

5. Spoon the pesto into a sterilised lidded jar and top with just enough olive oil to cover. If you know you will be using it all up within the week, you don’t have to bother doing this. You can also freeze the pesto by dolloping into an ice cube tray, freezing and then popping out the green cubes into a labeled bag.

Uses other than with pasta: as a dip for other vegetables and pitta chips; as a sandwich spread; mixed into a wholegrain and vegetable salad; spooned into vegetable soup, lasagne, or a vegetable bake; mixed into a cheese/cheeze sauce; stuffed into hollowed out baby peppers and roasted; stirred through hot steamed or roasted vegetables; mixed with mashed avocado and stuffed into a baked potato. You get the idea. This pesto is not just for pasta!