Pesto with Super Greens

Pesto has been a family fave for decades but two ways I've kicked it up over the years are the addition of lemon juice which adds a bright and welcome sour kick to the salty, herbacious pesto, giving it a little more lightness and the addition of a Hulk sized portion of super greens to kick up the vitamin profile of pesto! This recipe makes enough pesto for multiple meals so you can get creative with how you use it - it's not just for pasta! 

Ingredients:

• 1 clamshell super or power greens (approx. 5 oz)
• 2 bunches of basil leaves
• Juice of a lemon
• 2 cloves of garlic or 1 Tbsp minced garlic
• ½ cup walnuts or pine nuts
• ½ cup grated parmesan or pecorino romano (you can sub nutritional yeast here, try ¼ cup to start and can add more for taste after you’ve whizzed it all up)
• ¼-½ tsp of sea salt depending on your preferences
• ¾ - 1 cup of extra virgin olive oil (start with ¾ and add the remaining ¼ if pesto still seems too thick for your uses)

Instructions:

1. Put everything but the oil in a strong blender or food processor, pack it down and turn it on.
2. While it’s running, pour in the oil slowly through the opening at the top and whizz until super smooth.
3. You may have to stop and pack down the contents several times to achieve your perfectly smooth pesto.
4. Check flavor and adjust salt and/or nutritional yeast if making vegan pesto.

Makes about 18oz of pesto which can be both used immediately and then saved in an air-tight container in the fridge. Serve it over veggies, pasta, grains, spread it on proteins or bread in a sandwich or use it as a dip!