Pesto is one of the many things I thought were “off the table” when food allergies arrived in our home. One of my all time favorite meals was pesto gnocchi from a place on Lower Greenville that is now closed.
After a bit of Pinterest-ing and experimenting, I arrived at a Pesto I think is really, really good. You won’t miss those pine nuts or walnuts at all!
- 2 cups fresh basil leaves
- 2 cloves of garlic, sliced
- 1 tbs lemon juice (more if you like it lemony, like me!)
- ¼ c grated or shredded parmesan cheese (if you are dairy free or follow Paleo, delete this and double the hemp)
- ¼ c hemp seeds
- ⅓ c good olive oil (As you know, I like Long Meadow Ranch Prato Lungo)
- Place the basil and garlic in your food processor.
- Pulse until well chopped.
- Scrape sides if necessary.
- Add lemon juice, parmesan and hemp seeds.
- Pulse until a thick paste and scrape sides.
- With the processor running, stream in the olive oil.
- Voila!
Chop the basil and garlic first in your food processor.
Add the parmesan and hemp seed. The hemp seed gives it some protein as well. You can delete the parmesan all together and double the hemp seed. You won’t notice and will have a super protein alternative for your dishes.
Then stream in the olive oil. This makes 1 1/2 cups which is enough to use several times. It will keep in the refrigerator for about 10 days and helps elevate simple ingredients.
One night I used on a salad as the dressing.
Another with gluten free pasta and tomatoes.
And again with pan-seared chicken breasts. Make some this week and tell me how you use it.
Looks yummy Alicia!