Greens are an essential in our every day, just like this Kale Pesto recipe. The darker they are, the more packed they are with nutrients, but the real key to eating greens on the daily, is making them delicious.
When we decided to write our first book in our series, “Kale. All Day. Err Day.” we knew that folks needed help making bitter greens, taste really good. And it needed to be written in a fun and beautiful way, to actually make it believable.
You can only eat so much sautéed, stir fried, raw and steamed leafy greens in a week. So…it was time to convert our favorite recipes into a resource for you to use too! This Kale Pesto recipe is one of our top dips/condiments in the kitchen. We know it so well, that we don’t need the recipe anymore. Time to share!
Every week is a busy week. To keep our food full of flavor (when limited with time), we lean on homemade dips, marinades, and dressings. We must make at least one of these every weekend (well, we try), so we can throw them in lunches for snack (with veggie sticks), or dressing for BIG O’ salads, or even a spread on our favorite collard green wraps.
Make dark, leafy greens a constant in your every day eating.
These beautiful, chlorophyll-filled vegetables are loaded with vitamin A, C, K, iron, calcium, potassium, magnesium, fiber and so much more. Trust us, we can go ON and ON, but I’m not sure that will get you to eat them every day.
So here’s what you need to know:
- Kale particularly, is one of the most nutrient dense foods, which means lots of nutrients in very little calories (vs. a cookie with a low ratios of nutrients:calories).
- Dark leafy greens in general can help reduce the chances of cancer, heart disease, and cognitive diseases.
- There’s a ton to pick from (kale, chard, lettuce, mustard greens, bok choy, etc.).
- Sometimes they are bitter, but it can easily be masked with a squeeze of lemon juice.
- They can be made into any ethnic style dish that you’d like: Chinese greens with ginger, Moroccan greens with cumin and olive oil, Indian greens with turmeric.
- It’s best to lightly cook them vs. overcook them, to retain as much nutrients as possible.
- The more you eat them, the more you will crave them.
- They make for great dips!
Ingredients
1 large bunch of basil (about ⅔ cup chopped)
8 leaves of kale
½ teaspoon of sea salt (more or less to taste)
3 tablespoons olive oil
3 tablespoons of lemon juice
¼ cup of toasted almonds
¼ cup of toasted walnuts
Steps:
- Food process all of the ingredients.
- Taste and add more salt if necessary. If it is too bitter, add more lemon. If it is too thick, add 1-2 tablespoons more of olive oil.
Yields 1 to 1 1/2 cups
Kale. All Day. Err Day.
Hi! I am in love with your site and am so excited to try some of these delicious recipes (actually, I already threw together some almond butter last night thanks to you and, I swear, I am never buying it from the market again!). I am wondering–how do I store this pesto and how long will it be fresh?
Thank you!
Hi Tayler! — Thank you so much for finding us and trying our recipes. Isn’t that almond butter TO DIE FOR! So simple, huh? I was surprised the first time I made it to. PLUS the house smells wonderful when you’re roasting those almonds. Oh and you can store the pesto in a tightly sealed jar or container (preferably glass) for about 5-7 days. It doesn’t last long, but if you are ever needing to use it up towards the end of its ‘life,’ you can always toss it on some salad greens or sautéed kale. SO YUM! Enjoy 🙂