Yesterday, we had the pleasure of stopping by the Winter Farmer's Market located at Attleboro Farms in North Attleboro, MA. This was a great place to visit on a cold Sunday. There were numerous booths filled with farmers and artisan food producers. (North Attleborough Winter Farmer's Market)
As we were purchasing some organic raviolis from NorthStar Farms, they were also selling bunches of organic baby carrots. With the baby carrots was a recipe for Carrot Top Pesto. It seemed interesting and it reminded me of some of the parsley pesto recipes we have made before.
What I loved the most about this recipe is we got to use everything we bought...carrots and greens. The pesto was a little different since you do have to cook the carrot greens and onions first. After finally getting all ingredients in the food processor and giving it a few pulses, we had a great appetizer for crackers and bread. It had a wonderfully nutty taste with a warm bite. My younger son, who can be picky about what he eats, kept dipping crackers and enjoying the mix.
I'm hoping to have a little left at the end of the week because I will be making a vegetable risotto and it might benefit from a few tablespoons of carrot top pesto.
Ingredients:
1 bunch carrot greens (organic, washed, and loosely chopped)
1 clove garlic
1/2 onion chopped
1 teaspoon crushed red pepper
1/2 cup toasted walnuts
1/4 cup chopped italian parsley
1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
1 cup olive oil (we found we only used about 3/4 cup, total)
salt and pepper to taste
Preparation:
In a saute pan, heat 2 tablespoons of the olive oil over medium heat. Add the onions and loosely chopped carrot greens. Heat the greens and onions just until wilted (about 2 minutes). Remove from heat and let cool for a few moments.
In a blender, add the garlic, crushed red pepper, salt, pepper, walnuts, parsley, cheese, carrot greens mixture and half of the left over olive oil. Puree in pulses. Add the rest of the olive oil as needed to make a loose paste. Taste and adjust seasonings and oil.
Serve over prepared pasta, as a garnish for soups, or as a sandwich spread.
Keep in container in refrigerator for several days, or freeze for several weeks.
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