Mirror Friendly Carrot Top Pesto

If you’ve ever purchased carrots with the leafy green tops, you’ve probably cut them off and discarded. What you may not know is that those green tops are not only edible they are loaded with nutrients. They are rich in vitamins A, C & K as well as calcium, potassium, iron, fibre and even some protein.

So what can you do with those carrot tops?

Well you can chop them up and include them in a salad but I’ve got a great vegan friendly pesto recipe you can make from the carrot tops and you can use it to dress your carrots when you serve them and really impress your family and guests! Or you can use it as a dip or toss it with pasta.

Enter the Mirror Friendly Carrot Top Pesto…

The following ingredients were used to make the the pesto:

– 25g pistachios

– 1 large peeled garlic cloves

– 1 cup loosely packed carrot top leafy greens

– zest of 1 lemon

– 2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice

– 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

– 2 tablespoons of warm water

– salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

Step by step instructions in preparing the Mirror Friendly Carrot Top Pesto:

1. Rinse and dry the carrot top greens to remove any grit and dirt.

2. Pulse the pistachios and garlic in the bowl of a food processor.

3. Add the carrot stems, lemon juice, lemon zest, pinch of salt, and freshly ground black pepper.

4. Pulse several times, scraping down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula as needed.

5. Add the olive oil and two tablespoons warm water (this will help thin the pesto to make it easier for tossing!) and process until mostly smooth.

6. Season to taste with salt and pepper to your liking.

You can double or triple the pesto recipe if you have leftover carrot top greens. Just be sure to store it in a air tight container in the fridge and cover with a thin layer of olive oil. It will keep for about 5 days or you can freeze it and simply defrost it to use. If you do freeze it, I suggest you freeze in batches using an ice cube tray. This way you can easily remove and defrost the quantity you need.

So the next time you buy carrots with the tops, instead of discarding them, try this recipe. If you’ve never purchased carrots like this before, seek them out in your grocery store and give this awesome healthy recipe a go.

To fitness with love,

Tanya