Monday's Food Tip: Try Some Spinach Pesto This Fall!

Nothing beats fresh pesto sauce with pasta. But, unless you have an indoor herb garden, in the cooler fall and winter months, the 2 cups of fresh basil leaves you need to make enough pesto for a family meal can be hard to come by, and rather expensive if you have to buy the basil in an upscale supermarket.

To enjoy fresh pesto sauce all winter long, without breaking your budget, switch to spinach pesto. A large bag of fresh spinach leaves is only a couple of dollars and it will make several batches of delicious pesto.



Try this recipe:


SPINACH PESTO


2 c. packed fresh spinach leaves

2 cloves garlic, crushed

1 c. olive oil

1⁄2 c. pine nuts (lightly toasted, if desired)

1/3 to 1/2 c. freshly grated parmesan

1 Tbsp. balsamic vinegar

Salt

Freshly ground pepper



Combine the spinach, garlic, oil, and pine nuts in a blender or food processor. Blend into a smooth paste. Add the cheese and balsamic vinegar. Stir to blend. Add salt and pepper to taste.

When ready to serve with pasta, save a little of the water used to boil the pasta, and mix it with the pesto sauce to thin it a little. That way, the pesto will easily blend throughout the pasta.

Note: This pesto can be stored in the refrigerator for a week or so in a tightly covered container.

Try these other recipes for pesto made with spinach:

Spinach Pesto Pasta




Linguine and Spinach Pesto

Spinach Pesto Dip

Spinach Pesto Pasta Salad

Many people prefer spinach pesto to the more traditional pesto made with basil leaves.

You just might be one of those people, so give spinach pesto a try!