This is a great way to use the ENTIRE beet when cooking. I personally love to roast the beets and then put them in a salad or side for dinner. But then...I'm stuck with the beet greens. A lot of the times I don't know what to do with them. I don't always love them in a salad because they can be too bitter, but I also don't want to waste them due to their nutritional value. So, problem solved...beet pesto was created. You can make this and freeze it for nights you don't want to cook. You could also put it on pasta, bread for an appetizer, or even use on a sandwich instead of mayo. I hope you find this helpful when you don't know what to do with beet greens...now lets get cooking!
| Prep Time | 5 minutes |
| Cook Time | 5 minutes |
| Servings |
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Ingredients
- 2-3 cups beet greens take 7 beets and remove their greens (tops)
- 1 cup fresh basil
- 1 cup ground parmesan cheese
- 1/2 cup toasted pine nutes
- 1 lemon, juiced
- 1 pinch salt and pepper
- 3 garlic cloves
- 1/2 cup olive oil
Ingredients
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Instructions
- First thing is first, chop the beet greens away from the beet. I like to fill my sink up and place the greens in the water because they can be very dirty if you get them fresh. Give them a small bath in your sink to remove all the dirt and grime.
- While your greens are bathing lets toast up some pine nuts. To a small sauté pan add your nuts and pace over medium heat. Continue to toss until the nuts become golden brown and then remove. ***TIP: You will start to smell them toasting before you see them actually turn color. Keep a close eye on them because they can burn easy!
- Now back to the greens...once clean remove the greens from the water. To prep the greens, pull the stem from the leaves (similar to how you would with collard greens or kale).
- Place just the greens, no stems, in your food processor. Also to the food processor add your basil, toasted pine nuts, ground parmesan cheese, lemon juice, garlic, salt and pepper. Give everything a nice pulse to bring together.
- Now place the food processor on continuous and pour olive oil in slowly. This will help bind the pesto together and give it great flavor.
- That's it!! You just did a new take on pesto and didn't waste any of your beets. Enjoy!!
Recipe Notes
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