Lemony Spinach-Pistachio Pesto 檸檬菠菜開心果青醬

 

Whenever the whether starts to get warm, I like to incorporate more herbs, such as basil, parsley, and chives in my cooking. Every year around this time, I buy several different pots of herbs to grow. Unfortunately, they always die in the winter, since it's so cold here. I can't seem to keep any indoor plants without my cat eating them. Given all that, it's still worth it for me to get them and enjoy them, even if only for a few months. 

 

There are many different variations on pesto and how you can use it. Besides simply mixing with pasta, you can have it on your bread, eggs, potatoes, or even in your soup. For this pesto, instead of using basil, I used a mixture of baby spinach and basil, plus lemons. It freezes very well, so you can easily make several bottles in the summer time and store them in the freezer for winter use. The taste and the beautiful green color will remind you of the smell of your spring herb garden, no matter which season you have it!

Lemony Spinach-Pistachio Pesto (makes about 1 cup)

 

A: 1/3 C         roasted and unsalted pistachio

    1 1/2 C      baby spinach

    1 C            basil

    1              clove of garlic, roughly chopped

    juice of 1/2 lemon

    zest of 1 lemon

    1 1/2 T      parmesan cheese (optional)

    1/2 C         extra virgin olive oil

    some sea salt and pepper

more extra virgin olive oil

1. Place all the ingredients A in a food processor and blend until smooth. Check the seasoning.

2. Transfer the mixture to a glass container. Pour a little more extra virgin olive oil over it. Close the lid and store in the fridge or freezer, depending on when you plan to use it.

                                                                                               - Yvonne

 

Related recipe: Penne with FiddleheadFerns, Yellow Wax Beans and Lemony Spinach-Pistachio Pesto

 

每當天氣開始變暖，我特別喜歡在菜餚裡加許多新鮮的香草，如荷蘭芹、百里香、薄荷與羅勒等。每年的這個時候，我都會忍不住買幾盆不一樣的香草來種植。很不幸的是，家裡的貓咪很頑皮，每回天氣轉涼，當我把所有的植物放入室內，他總是愛亂咬它們。這個問題使我很頭痛，也無法種植任何室內植物，但儘管如此，每年的這個季節還是很值得買幾盆新鮮的香草來種植幾個月。

青醬的做法有很多種，而食用方法除了與義大利麵一起食用之外，也可以與麵包、馬鈴薯、魚、肉、或甚至湯等等一起食用。這個青醬食譜裡，我放了許多的菠菜、自己種的羅勒以及一些檸檬，趁天氣暖和，花園裡又剛長出來有許多新鮮的香草，摘些羅勒來做這個青醬，它可以保存於冷凍庫至少6個月左右，讓你在冬季也可以繼續享用這個新鮮又含檸檬與羅勒香的青醬喔！〜(^∇^〜）

檸檬菠菜開心果青醬 (約1杯)

 

A: 烤過、無鹽的開心果    1/3 杯

    菠菜                       1 1/2 杯

    羅勒                       1 杯

    蒜頭                       1 粒…稍微切碎

    檸檬汁                    半顆

    磨碎檸檬皮               1 顆

    Parmesan cheese     1 1/2 大匙 (素食者可以不使用)

    橄欖油                     約1/2 杯

    海鹽、黑胡椒

橄欖油

1. 將A料放入食物調理機打至濃狀。

2. 將調理好的青醬倒入玻璃罐中儲藏，並在上面倒一點橄欖油，這個步驟將會防止氧化。蓋上蓋子後可以放置冰箱一個星期或冷凍六個月。

                                                                                               - Yvonne

相關食譜：義大利麵與蕨菜、菜豆和檸檬菠菜開心果青醬