Garlic Scape Pesto

Oh yummy!  I had used garlic scapes before but had always just fried them up with butter for pasta, I had never tried them in something as wonderful as this pesto!

And it tasted that much better having harvested the scapes off my own garlic.

The recipe called for 9 - 10 scapes.  I didn't know that cutting the scapes off your garlic will encourage further growth of the bulb.  What a good reason to try a new recipe.

Rinse the scapes in cold water and cut off the knobby seed pods (havent found a use for those yet so they ended up in the compost) and chop the scapes into pieces. 

When my mom asked me if I wanted her old food processor last year I almost said no thinking it would sit unused in my cupboard taking up precious shelf space.  It's a great kitchen tool to have, it works great for pie crust too (my nemesis) but somehow with the help of the food processor I can actually make pie crust!

Add the chopped scapes with 1/2 cup slivered almonds and blend until it's fairly smooth, about 30 seconds.  With the machine running, slowly pour in 3/4 cup of extra virgin olive oil and blend another 15-20 seconds.

My kitchen smelled so good when I was making this!

Add 1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese with a little salt and pepper and blend a bit more

If you can resist, put this in the fridge for a few hours in a tightly covered bowl.  It tastes good as is but chilled it tastes so much better!

I had doubled the recipe and I'm going to try to freeze some.  It should freeze well for up to  3 months in an air-tight container.

Garlic Scape Pesto

9 - 10 garlic scapes, knobby seed-pods removed
1/2 cup slivered almonds
3/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese
salt and pepper to taste

Rinse scapes in cold water, chop into pieces.

Put scapes and slivered almonds into the food processor and blend for 30 seconds or until smooth.  Scrape down sides of bowl.

With the machine running, slowly add olive oil and process until mixed well and smooth, about 15 seconds.  Then add the cheese, salt and pepper and blend another 10 seconds or so.

This is yummy freshly made but it's even better when refrigerated for several hours or overnnight.  Place in a bowl with a tightly fitting lid.

These garlic scapes are only available for a couple months a year so if you can, buy lots and make a few batches of this pesto.  It will freeze well for about 3 months.