by Angie Booth
I love traditional homemade basil pesto (especially being half Italian!) but here’s another variety to try. It tastes really fresh and is an easy way of getting extra nutrients into your meals.
Kale is rich in calcium and phosphorous. This combination supports the health of your bones. The dark green colour means that kale is incredibly rich in chlorophyll and contains magnesium. Magnesium and calcium work in tandem in muscle tissues. Calcium causes the muscles to contract, whereas magnesium causes them to relax.
Broccoli contains chemical compounds which in lab studies seem to offer prevention against cancerous changes in cells. It’s high in vitamins A (beta-carotin) and K and in fibre, helps to reduce acidity in the body and is a natural anti-inflammatory.
I used a 50/50 combination of kale and broccoli for the pesto in the photograph above but you could just use one or the other on their own. Try different varieties by adding rocket or fresh herbs like basil or parsley. You could also add in a little parmesan cheese before the blending stage if you eat dairy.
Ingredients
Makes about two cupfuls
- 30g cashew nuts (soaked for 3 hours and dried off)
- 200g kale and/or broccoli roughly chopped
- 1 clove of garlic
- 200ml extra virgin olive oil
- Zest and juice of one lemon
- Salt and pepper to taste
- 1 large courgette (zucchini) per person made into spaghetti with a vegetable spiralizer, or a serving of whole wheat pasta each
Method
1. Simply blend everything together!
2. Mix the pesto through raw courgette spaghetti or cooked whole wheat pasta of your choice. If you don’t have a vegetable spiralizer to make the courgette spaghetti you can use a potato peeler to make ribbons instead. For some extra texture add some blanched broad beans or garden peas. Serve with some rocket and a little parmesan cheese if you like it.
3. You can serve the pesto on bruschetta with a little truffle oil, as a dip with vegetable crudités, stir it through quinoa or scrambled eggs or add a spoon of it to soup.
