and now for something completely different…

i bet you thought it was going to be just baby posts from here on out, eh?

for some reason the parsley we started from seed last year didn’t grow all summer. but midway through the winter we looked out back to see a large, healthy batch of parsley growing quite happily—despite the snow and ice and cold.

huh?

whatever.

we left it go until the beginning of the spring, when we found ourselves overrun with piles of fresh green parsley.

piles.

more than we could give away or use in one lifetime.

“can’t you make pesto with parsley instead of basil?” we wondered.

so we did…

ingredients:

fresh parsley
sunflower seeds (roasted and shelled)
parmesan cheese
garlic
salt
olive oil

all amounts are really to taste…we just kept adding until we were happy.

put the first 5 ingredients in the blender or food processor and give ‘em a whirl.

while blending, drizzle in olive oil until saucy enough for ya.

cook up a bunch of pasta, mix with sauce. top with diced tomatoes and more parmesan cheese.

 

serve with bread and butter.

yum.

this has a much milder flavor than a basil pesto. don’t expect basil flavor, or you’ll be disappointed. love the parsley in it’s own right, for it’s own qualities…and it will love you back.

the roasted sunflower seeds give a distinct nutty sunflower-y flavor. we used these because, well, it was the only “nutty” thing we had in the pantry at the time. (traditional pesto uses pinenuts) it was really good. experiment! you never know what might happen!