Pumpkin seed pesto

 

Kurpitsansiemenpesto

This is the first part of a two part recipe for a gnocchi dish I made last week.  I like to mix up my flavours, so decided to try a pumpkin seed pesto.  I toasted my pumpkin seeds to give them extra flavour, before soaking overnight and blending with lots of fresh basil.  It made a rich dark green pesto, packed full of flavour and with a slightly nutty side note.  I paired this with some homemade butternut squash gnocchi (recipe coming soon) and it worked perfectly.  The pesto keeps well in the fridge for up to a week.  You may need to bring the pesto up to room temperature if you are using it cold, as the olive oil has a tendency to thicken in the fridge.

Pumpkin seed pesto

2 dl pumpkin seeds toasted in a pan and then soaked overnight

100 g basil

2 tbsp nutritional yeast

1 lemon

1 – 2 dl olive oil

Clearspring toasted pumpkin seed oil

rinse the pumpkin seeds and add them to a food processor along with the basil, nutritional yeast, a good squeeze of lemon juice and 1 dl of olive oil.  Season well and blend.  Taste adding a little extra seasoning or lemon juice if necessary.  If the pesto is too thick, add a little more oil.  Finish off by stirring through a drizzle of toasted pumpkin seed oil.

The pesto keeps well for up to a week in the fridge.