So I tried out the radish leaf pesto recipe for supper yesterday, and it wasn't half bad. I forgot to put the garlic in, unfortunately, but even without that it was quite tasty. I had some on a cracker as a dip/spread, and that was even tastier than my rotini dish. In hindsight, I don't think I put enough pesto on the pasta. I will be trying this recipe again though, since it is very very easy and quick, and there is very little mess that needs cleaning up later. First, I gathered my ingredients: washed and de-stemmed radish leaves from my garden, extra virgin olive oil, Parmesan cheese (just the pre-grated stuff) and some pecan pieces.
Then, I chopped the radish leaves just a little bit, so they would more easily fit into my small food processor/chopper. (This can apparently be done with a mortar and pestle as well, but I don't have one of those yet...) Next, I buzzed the chopper for about 30 seconds or so, adding a few more leaves when there was room, along with a bit more cheese, oil and nuts.
The result was this 250 ml jar of pesto, which I immediately tested on some crispy crackers - delicious! This amount of pesto came from the leaves of about 8 radish plants, so even with my reduced number of radishes this year, there are still a lot more leaves where that came from. I realized when I made the pasta dish for supper that I had left out the garlic, but oh well - I will do that next time. I may also try using almonds instead of pecans, since both Gord and I like almonds better. The nice thing about pesto is that you can use pretty much any type of leaf, oil, nut and hard cheese you like, so there are lots of variations to try. 
Every summer there are more and more things I can just pick from my yard to eat, and that is a really good feeling.
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12 comments:
Mmmm! I can taste how good it would be -- peppery, I am sure!
I made radish leaf pesto a little while back and loved the mild flavor. I had no idea the leaves were edible...so I was especially excited that this resulted in one less thing being composted.
Hi IslandGardener - thanks for coming by and commenting :) It was quite mild of a flavor actually, much milder than the radishes themselves!
Beany, that's one of the things I like most about this pesto, is that I can eat something I used to compost! And it is a much milder flavor than the usual basil pesto - I like basil but not that much at once. So this is just right for me and my tastebuds :)
My worms are going to be disappointed loosing out on the radish greens but I've got to try this. A few weeks ago I had a salad made with baby beet greens. That was new to me too. I'd used beet greens in soups but not salad. They were fabulous with figs and a bit of goat cheese if I remember right. Not to mention beautiful and healthy with their red ribbed goodness. Thanks for the new tip!
You're welcome Kale. I think I may have originally gotten the idea and the linked recipe from Beany - I can't recall exactly, but I know I didn't find it myself, because I didn't even think to look for a recipe for something like that.
When it comes to beet leaves however, have you ever tried cooking them like spinach, in some butter with a little nutmeg on top? That is really, really good. :)
Yes it was Beany from whom I got the idea - thanks Beany!
http://themway.blogspot.com/2009/05/radish-leaf-pesto.html
Looks delicious!!
It was quite good SA! I tried a similar thing with the garlic scapes I got from the CSA today and that was quite a bit too garlicky - a blend of the two would probably be just right!
whoa I feel like I have found a cyber bosom friend. Buddhism AND looking for a use for radish leaves AND trying to garden in Alberta? seriously.
I found this recipe the other day, planning to give it a try.
http://justbento.com/handbook/johbisai/homemade-furikake-no-11-spicy-radish-leaves
Do you know... should I be pinching the flowers that have appeared on my radishes?
Hello Claire! Thank you so much for stopping by and commenting! I am quite new to all things Buddhist and gardening, but I have been in Alberta for quite a while. The mix of all three can get quite interesting! Thanks for that link - I never knew there was so much that could be done with radishes and radish leaves - this seems to be the year where I learn a lot about edible leaves on many different plants. As for the flowers, I'm not sure but it probably means your radishes are going to seed? Probably I would pinch them off, but I am mostly guessing there...
Looking forward to reading your blog - I'm always so glad to find a like-minded Albertan :)
I love this!
It's quite tasty alright, IsleD. :)
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