In the garden this week, Kale and Garlic Scape Pesto recipe

In The Garden 

Remember when I said soon the veggies would be ready all.at.once? Yeah.... Here it comes!

Right now the cucumbers, jalapeños and wax beans are ready for picking. There are tons of tomatoes on the vines but haven't turned red yet. Our honey bees are loving all the flowers on the squash plants! 

As I look at the corn.... 'Children of the Corn' comes to mind.

I am so grateful to have such a healthy, bursting at the seams garden. There is nothing quite like walking out your door and into your own "farmacy" , picking for your next snack or meal. I know that once those cherry tomatoes are ripe, the kids will be plucking them from the vine. Now that will be some great pictures to share!

Kale and Garlic Scape Pesto Recipe

Last week we harvested our first garlic crop. I think this was the most exciting for me. I use garlic in my cooking almost daily and to not have to buy any was going to amazing! We did really great for our first time!

One part of the garlic I was also excited to use was the scape. 

1. Garlic scapes are the flower bud of the garlic plant. The bud is removed in late June to encourage the bulbs to thicken up.  Scapes are delicious to eat! Scapes taste just like garlic. They can be used in exactly the same way as garlic in any recipe.
   I went to my local Farmers Market and a farmer had Scapes and told me I should try making pesto with mine. Pesto? Brilliant! This family LOVES basil pesto, let's try it.  For my variation I also used Kale, boosting the nutritional value and making sure it wasn't too garlicky for my children to eat.  Everyone LOVED it!  You must try it!
   
   
   

   
   

   2 cups of kale ( I used Tuscan Kale)

   3/4 cup Garlic Scapes, thinly sliced

   1/4 cup toasted walnuts

   1/2 cup Parmesan cheese

   1 cup olive oil

   Salt and Pepper to taste.

   
   

   Add Scapes, Kale and walnuts into a food processor and mix until finely chopped. With the processor still running, slowly add the olive oil. Remove pesto to a bowl and mix in the cheese. 

   
   

   Presto your Pesto is done! (Ok, that was cheesy but funny.) I served mine over whole wheat pasta.

   
   

   

   
   

   

   
   

   

   
   

   This was a quick and easy dinner to get on the table. Pesto is a go to staple in our house. I hope you try this recipe and it becomes one of yours too!

   
   

   Much love,

   Alyssa

   Ox