Pea Shoot and Pumpkin Seed Pesto
Delicate pea shoots and brilliant green pumpkin seeds are pulsed in the food processor to create this recipe for Pea Shoot and Pumpkin Seed Pesto.
Add a touch of spring to pesto! Delicate pea shoots and brilliant green pumpkin seeds are pulsed in the food processor to create Pea Shoot and Pumpkin Seed Pesto.
I handed my son his shoe this morning as he finished tying the other, and caught myself humming. As I bent down to help him unknot the laces, I smiled and sang out loud, “you are my sunshine, my only sunshine, you make me happy, when skies are grey!” We sang the rest together, and all of a sudden, I remembered my mom.
She used to sing that tune, and after I saw my little guy off to school, I found myself deep in thought. My children are my everything, *my* sunshine. My memory of her singing this song to me suddenly changed. It made it all the more special.
When I see the spring peas in the markets, I always think of her. She grew them in the garden, and I used to marvel at the tendrils that would climb high, curling their delicate stems and leaves around the walls she would fashion. It wasn’t until many years later that I began cooking with pea shoots, and now, with such a short season, I grab them anytime I see them at the market.
I pulsed some brilliant green pumpkin seeds in the food processor last night, followed by some of the delicate tendrils I found. I was cooking some fish en papillote, on a bed of quinoa and peas, and I wanted to add some zing. The pea shoots added a touch of spring to a classic pesto, giving the red snapper the life and earthiness I was looking for. You might say it also brought some sunshine.
ENJOYED THIS PUMPKIN SEED PESTO?
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Pea Shoot and Pumpkin Seed Pesto
Ingredients
- 1 cup pumpkin seeds
- 2 cloves garlic peeled
- 3 cups pea shoots
- 1/4 cup basil leaves
- juice of 1 lime
- 1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
- 1/2 cup olive oil plus more if necessary
- 1/2 cup grated Parmesan
Instructions
- In the bowl of a food processor, pulse the pumpkin seeds and garlic until finely chopped. Add the pea shoots, basil, lime juice and salt, and process until fine. With the processor running, add the oil until it is creamy, adding more if necessary. Add the Parmesan and pulse until combined.
- Keep stored in the refrigerator.
Notes
Nutrition
Comments
COOKBOOK
What a magnificent pesto! It looks like spring :)
You could market this pesto, Liren. Beautiful images of the pea shoots and the color of the pesto is brilliant. I’m looking fwd to finding these shoots now to give them a try. I’ve only just started trying to grow shoots (a whole new experience for me), I’ll look into these as well. :) Have a lovely weekend and thanks for sharing your recipe.
Wonderful post—-remembering your Mom—-seeing yourself do something similar—-Innovative pesto too. I like it! Spring is my favorite time of year and what a lovely celebration of it is this novel pesto.