In Your Bin August 26th: Cooks in the Kitchen!
This past week we had great response to our call for recipes. We are passing them along for you to enjoy.
Carrot Top Chimichurri
Roasted Carrot and Beet Top Salad, with Carrot Top Pesto, Pumpkin Seeds and Feta
We also received this for those cooks who like unconventional and a dash of this and a dash of that!
I asked my friend who I know makes unconventional pestos… here is her reply:
I do love making pesto from greenery other than basil!! I love basil but it just ends up that way 😄
I don’t have measurements but I make mine like this:
- greenery (like carrot tops and radish greens)
- nutritional yeast
- sunflower seeds (I prefer them over pine nuts just because of the price)
- olive oil
- salt
- garlic powder
- I sometimes add lemon too!
In Your Bin
Regular Share: Swiss Chard, Basil, Beets, Tomatoes, Cucumber, Onions, Beans, Plums – from Palatine Farms in Niagara!
Large Share: Garlic, Radishes, Melon, Carrots
Carrot Top Chimichurri
Hi! I make this delicious carrot top chimichurri that makes good use of those fresh fronds.
- 1 bunch carrot tops
- 1 head of garlic, peeled
- 1 tsp salt
- 2 tsp oregano
- 1/4 cup red wine vinegar
- 1 tbsp honey
- 1/4-1/2 cup olive oil
- Fresh jalapeno or red pepper flakes
- Go through the carrot tops and remove the delicate fronds from the heartier middle stems, and discard any dried or brown pieces.
- Add them to a food processor or blender with cloves from a full head of garlic, a teaspoon of salt, 2 teaspoons of dried oregano (or about a packed tablespoon fresh), 1/4 cup red wine vinegar (also works well with white wine vinegar), a tablespoon of honey, and between 1/4 and 1/2 cup of olive oil.
- Throw in a jalapeno pepper or some red pepper flakes if you don’t have fresh.
- Blend until smooth.
I use it as a salad dressing, a marinade, a sauce over roasted veg, truly anything that needs a
punch of freshness and flavour. I’ve also had success making it in a tall container with an
immersion blender, you just need to finely chop the carrot tops and garlic cloves first, and make
sure you’re incorporating all the ingredients. Highly recommend it!
Roasted Carrot and Beet Top Salad, with Carrot Top Pesto, Pumpkin Seeds and Feta
Salad Ingredients
- 1 bunch carrots including tops, about 6-8 medium-small carrots
- 2 medium beets
- 1/4 cup carrot top pesto (see ingredients below)
- 1/3 cup crumbled feta cheese
- 1/2 pumpkin seeds
- 1 bulb garlic
- 2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
- salt and pepper, to taste
Pesto Ingredients
- 1 cup carrot tops, roughly chopped
- 1-2 cloves roasted garlic (part of whole bulb listed above)
- 1/4 cup pumpkin seeds
- 1/4 cup olive oil (more if desired)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425⁰F.
- While oven is warming up, prepare the vegetables. Remove carrot tops, wash carrots and tops, slice carrots in half lengthwise. Scrub beets and slice into wedges. Toss in half the olive oil and spread out on sheet pan. Sprinkle with salt and pepper.
- Cut the top of the garlic bulb off and lay on a piece of tinfoil, shiny side up. Drizzle with remaining olive oil and wrap foil. Place garlic parcel on sheet pan with carrots and beets.
- Roast for 25-30 minutes until carrots and beets are fork tender and caramelized. Set aside and carefully open the foil around the garlic bulb to let cool.
- Allow garlic to cool before squeezing two bulbs of the roasted garlic from the bulb to make the pesto. Add the carrot tops, pumpkin seeds, and two bulbs of roasted garlic to the bowl of a food processor or blender and process until finely chopped. You may need to stop the motor and scrape down the sides of the bowl a few times. With the motor running, slowly add the olive oil until the desired thickness is reached. Add more olive oil if needed.
- Assemble the salad; lay carrots and beets on serving platter, top with pesto and sprinkle with feta and remaining pumpkin seeds. Serve with remaining roasted garlic.