Happy Monday, friends!
I’m currently in mourning for all the years my life lacked fennel. Ever since randomly having fennel delivered in my Imperfect Produce box a few months ago, I’ve become obsessed. Roasted fennel bulbs are my JAM, but I’m down with fennel soups too.
But for the longest time, I had no idea what to do with the greens. Which, by the way, aren’t your typical greens. They’re more like little hairs, but fennel hair doesn’t sound too tasty. Greens it is! Anyways, I always felt bad throwing these out because I really hate wasting food. I’m a big proponent of eating “nose to tail” and I don’t see why that shouldn’t apply to vegetables as well.
I’ve seen quite a few people save fennel greens and sprinkle them on random roasted veggies and salads. Here’s the thing. I eat A LOT of fennel, so I sprinkle here and there isn’t gonna do it.
I have no clue why it took me so long to think of using the greens for pesto. It used to be an absolute staple in my life…but usually over a BIG bowl of pasta. When I cut grains out of my diet, pasta sauces naturally fell the wayside too. What a tragedy because pesto is literally the seventh wonder of the world.
There are so many delicious uses for pesto aside from chomping on gluten. Damn, I’d eat it by the spoonful if it wasn’t frowned upon. Normal uses include a tasty sauce for eggs and frittatas, roasted veggies, and even meats! Basically everything I eat could be covered in pesto. And I’m 1,000% ok with that.
Besides the swap from basil for fennel greens, pesto is extraordinarily versatile. You can use whatever nuts you like, ditch the chili flakes (if you’re boring), or add lemon juice for some freshness!
Last thing I’ll say about pesto: it’s freezable! As a single (af) person, it can be hard to eat through an entire batch of anything myself. So being able to freeze half of whatever I make greatly reduces my food waste. It also saves me on those weeknights I get home late and contemplate just eating macadamia nuts for dinner.
Enjoy this one! Let me know what you spread it on!
| Prep Time | 5 minutes |
| Cook Time | 5 minutes |
| Servings |
servings
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- 1 cup fennel greens packed
- 3 cloves garlic
- 2/3 cup pine nuts
- 2 tsp pink himalayan salt
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 2 tsp chili flakes
- 1 cup extra virgin olive oil or enough for desired consistency
Ingredients
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|
- Pick off the greens from 1-2 fennel bulbs. When packed down, it should be about 1 cup. Add to a large food processor (or blender).
- Peel three cloves of garlic and add to food processor along with the pine nuts, salt, garlic powder, and chili flakes.
- Turn the food processor on and slowly add the olive oil until your desired consistency is reached. You may need to stop and scrape down the sides.
- Once all ingredients are blended together, serve fresh or store in fridge. Also freezable.