You will know who your true friends are after eating garlic scape pesto. It is guaranteed to ward off evil spirits and maybe even a few good ones.
For this recipe, you will need:
- A bunch of garlic scapes
- Some good olive oil
- Pine nuts or walnuts
- Lemon juice
- Salt
- Blender or Food Processor
- About 10 minutes
The recipe doesn’t use exact measurements, so just understand that the bulk of the recipe is simply garlic scapes. You will be using the other things sparingly. If I had to put a ratio to it, I’d say 70% garlic scape, 30% everything else combined. It really depends on how much you like garlic.
Garlic scapes are not as spicy as raw garlic cloves, so you can use quite a bit of them without getting a stomach ache.
- Rinse and dry the garlic scapes. Trim off the edges or any browned parts. Chop into 1-2″ pieces. Tip: I find it is easier to just let the garlic scape curl into its natural position and then cut an X into it.
- Alternately add scapes, oil & nuts into food processor or blender. Blend until smooth using a bit of lemon juice to thin as necessary (you won’t need much). Salt to taste.
I have added other herbs or spices to the pesto to switch-up the flavor. This recipe is only a base and you should experiment with adding other seasonal herbs. Be sure to chew on some parsley after indulging yourself with this pesto.
Eat it generously on breads or crackers, with cheese or without; on pasta, potatoes, or even meats. Add it to soups, or use it as a vegetable dip (especially for vegetables you should love, but don’t!); I have used it as a base for salad dressings and in place of mayonnaise, too.
Give it to friends! Give it to enemies! Give it to grandma when she has a cold. But most importantly, get yourself some garlic scapes and eat ’em up.