Saturday, July 2, 2011

Not your everyday pesto


A friend of mine and I took a drive to Ladner, BC yesterday morning in search of sweet strawberries, and boy did we ever find them!  We went strawberry picking on Westham Island, and filled our baskets with beautiful juicy berries.  On our way back into the city we stopped at a small farm and found this crazy looking ingredient: garlic scapes!

What are they?  Well, they are the shoots that grow from garlic bulbs.  They are available for a short period of time between mid-June and mid-July.  I bought a couple bunches not too sure what I was going to make with them, and then the lady at the cashier behind me said, "that makes wonderful pesto".  Done!

Garlic Scape Pesto

8 - 10 garlic scapes, washed and cut into 1.5 inch pieces
1/2 cup finely grated parmesan cheese
1/3 cup toasted pine nuts
1/2 cup olive oil
juice of 1 lemon
salt and fresh ground pepper

You can toss with pasta, or top a piece of fresh fish with this tasty pesto.  We tossed it with local baby potatoes along side a piece of fresh salmon, a green salad, and a glass of Riesling.  For dessert, we had a piece of lemon cake with the strawberries that we picked and a dollop of whipped cream.  Heaven...

Photography by: Melissa LeBlanc

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