This pesto substitutes traditional basil for spring asparagus. Don’t just leave this delicious sauce to pastas, but try it on meat or a sandwich, too.
By Yuliya Childers
Served with spaghetti as an emergency dinner option, but that’s not the only use, as you may guess this pesto also goes splendidly with: chicken, veal, pork chops, eggs, or even spectacular sandwich.
Simple Asparagus Pesto
- Yield: 3 cups 1x
Description
This pesto substitutes traditional basil for spring asparagus. Don’t just leave this delicious sauce to pastas, but try it on meat or a sandwich, too.
Ingredients
Scale
- 1 lbs of fresh asparagus, trimmed
- 1/4 cup pignoli or pine nuts
- 1/2 lemon – zest and juice
- 3–4 cloves garlic
- 1/2 packed fresh basil leaves
- salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
- 1/2 to 3/4 cup olive oil
- 1/2 cup grated Parmesan
Instructions
- Bring water to a boil in a pot. Add a good pinch of salt. Add asparagus and boil for 3-4 minutes, until tender but not mushy.
- While asparagus is cooking, toast pine nuts in a dry skillet, tossing or stirring them frequently to prevent scorching. Let cool until manageable.
- Combine cooked asparagus, pine nuts, lemon zest and juice, garlic, basil, salt and pepper in a processor and mince until smooth. While processor is running, add olive oil slowly, until pesto reaches pancake batter thickness.
- Add Parmesan and process a few seconds more.
- Category: Main
