Pesto Sauce

[jackthehat]

Does anyone have a recipe for making a Green Pesto Sauce without using nuts of ANY sort ?

[Clanad]

See what you think of this:

5 cloves garlic
1 bunch green onions
3 cups packed fresh basil, stems removed
3 cups packed fresh parsley, stems removed
1 lemon; remove zest and squeeze juice
1 (10oz) jar stuffed olives, drained
1 (3 oz) jar capers, drained
1 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
1/4 - 1/2 teaspoon hot pepper flakes
good quality olive oil
PREPARATION:
In food processor, with the motor running, drop in garlic, green onions, and lemon zest. Process until finely minced. Add olives, capers, & hot pepper flakes and process until finely minced. Add as much parsley and basil as will fit and process with pulse turns. Repeat until all ingredients are processed. With motor running, add lemon juice and Parmesan cheese. Slowly add enough olive oil to make a "pesto" consistency. Separate into 1 cup containers. Each cup coats about a pound pasta. Mix sauce with hot pasta and toss well. Garnish with cherry tomato quarters and fresh basil leaf slivers. Sauce freezes well. (Source: Al Verde Pasta Sauce, Your Guide to Southern U.S. Cooking)

[warpig3]

I have never tried it but was thinking you could replace the pine nuts with somehting like chick peas, it would alter the flavour slightly but would still give you the 'bulk' that the pine nuts provide.

[pastafreak]

All you need is 2-3 garlic cloves, 2 cups basil leaves, about 1/2-3/4 cup parmesan cheese(grated), and olive oil-again about 1/2 cup. Instead of pine nuts I thought you could try sunflower or pumpkin seeds--similiar taste and consistancy to the nuts-experiment with the amount. I intend to try this myself soon.

[jackthehat]

Excellent. Thankyou.
My partner has a fairly major (any sort of) nut allergy; but we keep on turning up delicious looking recipes using green pesto sauce. The chick peas idea sounds good; we like chick peas !

Thanks one and all.

[Androcles]

Sorry to come back on this, but reading your question reminded me of one of these General Knowledge questions that Pine nuts are not actually nuts, but seeds.

Anyway, I don't know if you partner has a problem with them, but this reference may help....

http://www.eatwell.gov.uk/healthissues/foodint olerance/foodintolerancetypes/pinenutallergy/

[rubberneck]

The allergy to Pine Nuts is already (unfortunately and accidently) proven...........which is a real pain in the **** (self-edited) as I love all nuts, seeds.........

..........thanks one and all for the recipes and help.

[rubberneck]

Aha.........was trying out a new name, just to see if I could, basically.........

I usually AM Jackthehat.........