Happy weekend everyone! Where I live it is actually a long weekend so I hope you are off enjoying some fun adventures. I am on call this weekend so I am sticking around Calgary. Working, blogging… it's business as usual around here. But the sun is shining and it's going to be hot so that makes me a pretty happy girl. With this heat wave continuing I have been turning on my stove and oven less and less. It's just too hot for that! Most of us here don't have air conditioning because, well, it just doesn't get that hot here usually.
With the non-cooking theme going on around here I am bringing you a delicious pesto recipe that is made with fresh parsley (you could also use basil). The parsley I am using came straight from my parent's garden in British Columbia so not only was it super fresh, it was also very cheap. That is always a bonus in my books.
This pesto is made with only a few ingredients that I am sure most of you already have on hand. It is light and fresh tasting with a slight hint of lemon from the lemon juice and zest. I don't like to waste food if I can help it, so adding the zest is a way to ensure you use all of your precious lemon.
I have included a number of optional variations with this recipe. Don't tolerate nuts? No problem, there is a seed version instead. Do you eat dairy? Great, add some parmesan cheese. Are you worried about the purity of your olive oil? Substitute avocado or walnut oil instead. You will see below that there are even more variations included and I would love to hear which version you like the best.
This is a great topping for fish or poultry dishes. I also like to eat it with vegetables as a dip, or even straight out of the jar. You could also make this into a dressing by adding a bit more oil to make it thinner. Yep it is a pretty versatile recipe!
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Ingredients
2 cups packed fresh parsley (stems removed and cleaned)3/4 cup raw cashews (preferably soaked and dehydrated first) 1/3 cup olive oil1 TBSP lemon juice1/2 tsp lemon zest sea salt and pepper to tasteDirections
1. Place all the ingredients in your food processor and blend until smooth2. Remove from food processor and enjoy!Optional Variations
1. Substitute basil for parsley2. Use sunflower seeds or almonds in place of cashews3. Use avocado oil or walnut oil instead of olive oil4. Add one clove garlic5. Add 1/4 cup shredded parmesan cheesePrint Recipe