The beginning of a CSA season is chock full of greens and sometimes your fridge can get a little crowded. To take advantage of all those great greens, you have to get a little creative. Whenever I have a green that I don’t think I can get to, I make pesto out of it. I either keep it in the fridge to use in the next week or freeze it to be eaten later in the year. Pestos are great on a sandwich, on a pizza, on pasta, as a dipping sauce, or even as a salad dressing.
I used to think pesto was a luxury that I could only indulge in once in a while until I realized pesto doesn’t just have to be heaps of basil and bank-breaking pine nuts. Really pesto is just garlic, olive oil, greens, nuts, cheese, and lemon juice (optional). You can substitute just about any green(parsley, cilantro, arugula, broccoli rabe, scallions, kale, mustard greens, radish tops, carrot tops, beets greens, spinach) or nut (walnuts almonds, macadamia nuts, pecan, pistachios, sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds, peanuts). I most often use sunflower seeds because they are the least expensive. This is a great option for anyone with a nut allergy that has never tried pesto. Click on any of the links above to turn whatever green you have left in your fridge into pesto.
Check out this article for an easy and convenient way to freeze pesto. You can make a large batch and then just pull out one serving at a time. We did this last year and it was great to pull one out in the middle of winter for that fresh spring taste.
Making the Most of Your CSA 