Making pesto out of left over vegetables is a nice way to get rid of left over vegetables or herbs. I was going to pull all the beautiful tops that my rabbits have been sharing with the compost pile, now with me, if they get any more. Serve this radish greens pesto over pasta, spread it on crackers, or slather it inside mozzarella grilled cheese sandwiches. Her book, Attainable Sustainable: The Lost Art of Self-Reliant Living (National Geographic) offers a collection of projects and recipes to help readers who are working their way to a more fulfilling DIY lifestyle. Ready to switch from store bought to homemade? 0 %. I have some growing in my basement right now . This pesto is made from radish greens rather than the more traditional basil. Yumm! I believe you could even fry them a bit more and put them into salad the way people do fried onions! Or should you stick with basil pesto? Please see my, How to Get Rid of Cabbage Worms in the Garden, Growing a Kitchen Garden for Fresh Produce, small handful of fresh cilantro leaves, optional. and i have been feeding them to the rabbits! While radish greens taste best when they are younger and more tender (they will also be less bitter) they can be eaten even in their mature state, but just a little more bitter tasting. Here in the Caribbean I have lots of coconut. A Publishers Weekly top ten pick from National Geographic Books! Add more olive oil if necessary to bring to your desired consistency. Just plant a new row every couple of weeks and you’ll have radishes and radish greens ready to harvest all season long. Through seasonal and cultural recipes, to home gardening, and slow living traditions, we hope to help evoke an appetite for life and a deeper awareness and appreciation for nature, and the threads that connect us all within it. Radish Leaf Pesto tastes great with pasta, zoodles or as a spread on your sandwich. Radish greens in particular due to their bitter flavor are also excellent for encouraging good digestion and are traditionally used in Ayurvedic medicine for this very purpose. They’re a bit prickly, so not a great addition to a salad. also, you can freeze them and they will still work in pesto and dressing when you have time to make. I know it may be a shock to some of you that until this year – I never planted a garden! Thanks! Don’t forget to give it a star rating below! Thanks for the reminder to save the greens! Love lg radishes sliced, boiled til tender, drain, add butter, salt & pepper. Next, add parmesan cheese, garlic, olive oil, sunflower seeds, and salt and pepper to the food processor. My husband has a produce job and says he tells customers that radish leaves are similar to arugula – the peppery bite – and many cruciferous vegetables have that same quality. Once you have achieved the desired texture spoon the pesto into glass jars and cover the top of the pesto with a layer of olive oil. So the next time you go to buy a bunch of radishes save the greens and whip up this simple, and delicious pesto! Thanks for this post. Getting ready to put some radish seeds in the garden this weekend and see what comes up. Summer means that all our favorite seasonal fruits and veggies are coming out to play and if you live in a place like New England where the winters are long and cold you know exactly how exciting it feels to see those first few veggies of summer starting to arrive at your local farmers market. Radishes are one of my favorite early summer veggies, but I am always so sad to see that most people aren't utilizing most of the vegetable when they only eat the radish root and throw away the greens. While sometimes waste is going to be inevitable, often I find that people waste food because they don't know what to do with the "extras" that aren't usually eaten. Radish leaves are edible too. It’s a nice, flavorful addition to your favorite panini sandwich, too. I love radishes, I grow them every year I have a garden. Our community garden plot doesn’t get plowed in time for a real “early” spring garden up here in upstate NY. Chill to combine flavors and use in your favorite pesto application. Radish leaves contain more nutrients than the entire radish bulb itself. Remove woody stems and put in blender or food processor with remaining ingredients. Plant radishes as soon as your ground can be worked, and they’ll be ready in just 3-4 weeks. I’ve made arugula pesto before but had never thought of using radish leaves… Mahalo nui! Just think about how much of the radish plant is actually above ground -- in fact, most of the radish plant is above ground with a beautiful canopy of greens working so hard to provide the energy needed to grow that delicious radish root underground. cool! Drop the first four ingredients (leaves, garlic, olive oil, lemon juice) to the bowl of your food processor and pulse to form a thick paste. My colleague, April Paffrath, shared a recipe for radish leaf pesto at Wicked Tasty Harvest and I’ve been hooked ever since. Not all of these would make good pesto, of course. Store in the refrigerator for up to one week (as long as there is olive oil on top it could keep even longer), or place in the freezer to use at a later date. Spicier than pesto made with basil leaves, radish leaf pesto is a fabulous way to stretch the harvest from an early spring garden. Note: If you like your pesto more oily simply add more olive oil as you are processing until you get the right consistency. So if you love bitter flavors then feel free to enjoy radish greens at any age, and if you don't like bitter tasting foods then opt for younger greens or store more mature greens in your freezer with your other veggie scraps as they are perfect for making veggie broth with. How beautiful! Yum….yum! Kris Bordessa founded Attainable Sustainable as a resource for revitalizing vintage skills. This radish green pesto is super simple to make and delicious served with crackers or over pasta, not to mention it is a great way to use up those radish greens and reduce your food waste! Let me help you make some changes! Radishes are a good crop because you can plant them at various times during the gardening season if your soil isn’t too hot. hated throwing these bright green stems in compost. Here at Attainable Sustainable, I aim to encourage readers — that’s you! The sharp taste reminds of arugula pesto. 1.9 g I made some yesterday but added spinach to the mix to add additional nutrients, color and flavor. I wasn’t sure about planting a container garden on my apartment balcony this year, but now I want to try this! Like many bitter foods, the bitter flavor in radish greens helps stimulate digestive juices and bile, which help you digest your food better. ABOUT | BLOG | CONTACT | POLICIES, Simple Sustainable Living For A Healthy Mind, Body, Home, And Planet. I have been adding the young radish leaves to my salads, but I cut them very fine. I grated a few pieces of coconut to the mix and it was heavenly. And yes as well to the greens….try them with balsamic vinegar or on top of your white pizza! Sign up to receive our weekly emails filled with seasonal recipes, holistic health tips, travel guides, and sustainable living inspiration. I’ve just tried the radish pesto and I love it.