Smokin' in Seattle - June 11

Who's getting ready for PNW Eggfest this Saturday? I just made nettle pesto for the shrimp pestodillas!

Stinging Nettle Pesto as given to me by my friend Kristi O'Donnell kristio.com

How to collect the nettles:

I wear gloves and long sleeves and take a large bowl to the gardens’ edge. Select nettles that are young, or if they are already older and flowering, I just cut a leaf at a time and let it drop into the bowl. You can use a scissors or pruners. Grape sheers (needle nose pruners work great!)

While cutting, I had a large pot of water coming to boil.
Drop the leaves into the bowl- use a tong if you have to pick them off the counter.
Blanche for one minute.

Ingredients:

2 cups stinging nettles, blanched and chopped (figure 6 cups raw = one big bowl full)
1/2 cup Parmesan
1/2 cup pine nuts, roasted (I substitute almonds, tamari almonds or walnuts)
4-5 large garlic cloves, peeled
1/2 cup olive oil
1 tbsp lemon juice
salt and pepper, to taste

Makes about 1 cup of pesto.

1. Blanche nettles for a minute in boiling water. Remove to a salad spinner and shake off excess water, then ball up your nettles and give one good squeeze to wring out more water. Save the dark green, nutrient-laden liquid for tea if you like, but you'll want olive oil lubricating your pesto, not water.

2. Add nettles to food processor, along with roasted pine nuts (or walnuts, if you prefer), grated parmesan, garlic cloves, lemon juice, and seasoning. Pour half of the olive oil in and...Whirrrr. Pour the rest of the oil in. Whir again, until your preferred consistency. That's it. My old blender needed a bit more liquid to puree it, so I used a bit more lemon and olive oil.

This recipe makes a fairly pasty pesto; if you want something a little more spreadable for bread, etc, try using more olive oil.

Next, think about putting up. You may want to fill a few small (e.g. 4 oz) tubs for the freezer for dinner party pasta, as well as an ice tray for smaller servings. To fill the tray, use a spoon or use a plastic Ziploc with a corner cut out and squeeze out a blob of pesto in each cavity, just like icing. Remove the pesto cubes from the tray once frozen and seal in a freezer bag; now you've got instant sauce to brighten a fillet of fish or piece of meat—or simply to spread on good homemade rosemary bread baked or homemade pizza.

Reference: http://fat-of-the-land.blogspot.com/2009/03/stinging-nettle-pesto.html