Broccoli Pesto (gluten-free, contains dairy)

My 16 month old daughter who once was a great eater, has recently been refusing to eat most things I put in front of her! I’ve tried everything…her past favorites and new dishes, but nothing! Having gone through it all with my 3 1/2 year old son, I know it’s a phase that I’m going to have to just deal with. But being a mom, I have hard time letting her go throughout the day without a well balanced diet, and am always on the lookout for ways to add in grains, proteins, and veggies.

This brings me back to the recipe for today’s post – Broccoli Pesto! My daughter loves pasta, especially with my fresh pesto sauce. So I decided to add some steamed broccoli to the mix, keeping all other ingredients the same as my traditional pesto recipe. I kept adding broccoli florets to the pesto, letting my food processor do the work, and soon came to realize that the overall flavor of the pesto seemed to remain the same! If anything, the added flavor of the broccoli was very subtle and added some great texture to the sauce. The resulting pesto tasted great! Both my son and daughter ate it up for lunch with some whole wheat pasta. I typically add sauteed broccoli florets to pasta dishes, but this recipe provides for a quick and easy way to add veggies into a traditional pesto recipe, especially if you have kids who do not like to eat plain broccoli. Not to mention it’s a perfect freezable sauce to pull out on those busy days for a quick meal. I’m definitely adding this to my list of pesto variations – traditional pesto, cilantro parsley pesto, avocado pesto, sun-dried tomato pesto, and now broccoli pesto!

What is your favorite variation of pesto?

If you want more suggestions or ideas on what to do with pesto, check out these recipes:

• Potato Pesto Pasta
• Grilled Veggie Pesto Sandwich (one of my favorites)
• The Ultimate Green Panini
• Phyllo Pesto Pizza w/Smoked Mozzarella
• Pesto Crostini
• Creamy Pesto Pasta

Broccoli Pesto (gluten-free, contains dairy)

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Yields makes ~ 2 1/2 cups pesto

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Ingredients:

• 4 oz. fresh basil, washed and dried
• 2 cups small broccoli florets
• 3/4 to 1 cup olive oil
• 3/4 cup pine nuts
• 3 cloves garlic
• 1 cup Parmesan cheese
• salt
• freshly ground black pepper

Directions:

1. Bring a medium size pot full of water to a boil. Add the broccoli florets to the boiling water and cook until the broccoli is tender, but still crunchy (this should only take a few minutes).
2. Add all the ingredients, including the cooked broccoli, into a food processor. Puree until all the ingredients are completely blended into a pesto-like consistency.
3. Add salt and pepper to taste.

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https://vegetariangastronomy.com/broccoli-pesto/

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~ Anjali