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Kale Pesto: Your New Best Friend

January 7, 2013

If I've said it once, I've said it a million times (what does that saying really mean by the way?), if there's a food item I suggest every mom always keep in her fridge for a quick dinner fix, it's pesto. Pesto is your best friend during those times when it's late in the day and you're officially too brain dead to make dinner -- let alone think about what it should be. I should know, because I feel that way weekly.

I've rarely met a kid who doesn't enjoy pesto. Maybe it's the unmistakable taste of Parmesan cheese which makes it so addictive for them. Mixed into rice or pasta, as part of an Egg Pesto Melt, whipped up in an omelette (as Chloe has been asking for all this week), or using a good thick spread of it on chicken or fish before baking, pesto is a miracle food which makes most any food taste better.

Start your 2013 off right and ensure your mealtimes will be super easy from now on. Just make a big batch of this Kale Pesto recipe, put some in the fridge, and then freeze the rest in small individual containers so you will always have some on hand when you need it. And trust me, once your kids taste this recipe, you're going to!

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Kale Pesto  (makes 1 cup)

  • Prep Time:5 minutes,
  • Total Time: 5 minutes,

Ingredients

  • 2 cups packed kale leaves
  • 1/2 cup toasted walnuts*
  • 2 tablespoons grated parmesan cheese
  • 1 garlic clove, roughly chopped
  • 2 tablespoons lemon juice
  • 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
  • 1/4 cup olive oil

Preparation

  1. 1. Place all of the ingredients in a food processor and puree until smooth.
  2. 2. Serve over rice, pasta or as a sandwich spread.
  4. Note: If you don't have toasted walnuts, you can easily make them. Just spread roughly chopped walnuts on a baking sheet and pop in a 400°F oven for five minutes.

Accompaniments: cooked pasta, cooked rice, chicken, fish or as a sandwich spread

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Comments






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  2. Mary

    May 14, 2013 at 1:46 pm

    Reply

    Loved this recipe- thank you! I also used pine nuts instead of walnuts, and used 1/2 kale and 1/2 basil. I served it with whole wheat pasta and sliced chicken breast. The kids really loved it, and my older son (6) actually said that it’s his favorite. As if he had tasted it millions of times before – hahaha! thanks again Catherine. This was a great way to get them eating kale.

  3. Isabelle

    April 24, 2013 at 7:22 pm

    Reply

    I liked it but everyone thought the raw garlic was too strong. I had to add more kale, nuts and oil to drown out the garlicky taste Next time I will roast the garlic beforehand.

  4. Ines

    April 8, 2013 at 10:16 pm

    Reply

    LOVE this recipe, I subbed with pine nuts as I don’t have any walnuts handy. Worked well.

    Wondering how long it keeps well in the fridge?

  5. Meg

    March 20, 2013 at 11:42 am

    Reply

    I made a dairy and nut free half recipe of this by substituting 5 tablespoons shelled hemp seeds for the walnuts, and 4 tablespoons Italian style bread crumbs for the cheese. It turned out great and now my daughter can enjoy some pesto!

  6. samanthacraig

    March 7, 2013 at 5:02 pm

    Reply

    This is so good, I had to sub with roasted almonds because I didn’t have any walnuts. I gave it to my daughter as a topping to her crackers & also on her pasta. So good & very versatile! Thanks for all your great recipes!

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  8. Karey

    February 26, 2013 at 4:33 pm

    Reply

    My daughter loved it straight out of the food processor!

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  10. Audrey

    February 10, 2013 at 9:56 am

    Reply

    Can you make this without walnuts? Or will it taste totally different?

    • catherine

      February 11, 2013 at 12:13 pm

      Reply

      It will definitely taste different, but you can use just about any nut you prefer!

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  12. Tina

    February 5, 2013 at 4:27 pm

    Reply

    My 4 year old says “Yum” whe he eats it with noodles. We love this recipe. Made a double batch and froze in 3oz cintainers. Will never be without it in my freezer!!

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  15. Jess

    January 30, 2013 at 2:38 pm

    Reply

    A food processor is at the top of my “To-buy” list. Would this work in a blender? I have a stand mixer too, but no attachment that would puree anything.

    • catherine

      January 30, 2013 at 4:03 pm

      Reply

      Yes, a blender will work. Just watch it and scrape the ingredients down so that everything gets nice and smooth!

  16. d

    January 23, 2013 at 8:01 pm

    Reply

    wanted to use nutritional yeast to make the recipe vegan – how much would you suggest as a substitute for the cheese?

    • catherine

      January 24, 2013 at 11:18 am

      Reply

      I would start with half the amount. Taste it and see if you’d like more of that flavor in the pesto!

  17. Terri

    January 21, 2013 at 1:07 pm

    Reply

    This may very well be the perfect recipe to get my girls to eat some leafy greens! I’m definitely trying it soon.

  18. alena

    January 17, 2013 at 8:10 pm

    Reply

    I’m trying to add more greens by making pesto and smoothie for the whole family. And looking at your cooking gear, you used a Cuisinart Mini-Prep Plus Food Processor which I don’t have. I do have a magic bullet, would that be a good food processor for all your pesto and smoothie recipe? I just got your cookbook couple days ago and I remember seeing a post that you have two cookbooks, so when will the second book coming out? Thanks so much!

    • catherine

      January 18, 2013 at 11:36 am

      Reply

      The Magic Bullet should be just fine for all of those recipes! My second book will be coming out this summer!

  19. Alexandria

    January 17, 2013 at 1:41 pm

    Reply

    Made the Kale Pesto on Sunday night, had with bowtie pasta and a few grape tomatoes. My husband loved it. Had leftovers for lunch. Loved it! Made a pesto omelet (with spinach, mushrooms and tomatoes), LOVE, LOVE, LOVED IT!

  20. Sheila

    January 13, 2013 at 1:37 pm

    Reply

    Hi, I just wanted to let you know that I tried this recipe and it was deliecious—I shared it on my blog (giving you credit) and encouraged folks to follow you!!! Thanks for a great recipe!

  21. Elizabeth

    January 12, 2013 at 7:25 pm

    Reply

    Can you use pine nuts instead of walnuts or would it change the flavor too much?

    • catherine

      January 14, 2013 at 11:20 am

      Reply

      You can definitely use pine nuts! It will change the flavor, but it will still be yummy!

  22. Super Human Foods

    January 11, 2013 at 11:11 pm

    Reply

    I saw a Kale Pesto recipe that substituted sunflower seeds for nuts. As you may or may not know, seeds are much easier to digest than nuts!

  23. Samantha

    January 9, 2013 at 2:40 pm

    Reply

    I have made basil pesto – a good idea to freeze is to do it in ice cube trays, then when frozen, pop out and into a freezer bag!

  24. Cait

    January 8, 2013 at 11:56 am

    Reply

    Had some kale in the fridge so I made it last night–loved it! My 6-yr-old, who also loved it, kindly reminded me that I didn’t need to eat so quickly….. it was that delicious!

  25. Janelle Weems

    January 8, 2013 at 10:04 am

    Reply

    Wow ! So excited to try this ! My daughter loves the spinach pesto ( hubby too ) I make it every Sunday for the week! Can’t wait to add this to the fridge !

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