Anna's Pesto

If my Italian BFF ever saw this recipe she would probably shoot me in the face. This is definitely not classic pesto. In fact, it's also a delicious pun (get it, annapest-o?). The taste of this still reminds me of summer.

2 cloves of garlic
1 tbsp flax seeds
1/4 c walnuts
1/2 c basil leaves
1/2 c spinach
salt & pepper
olive oil
1 tbsp parmesan or other hard stinky cheese (romano, asiago, etc)

In the bowl of a food processor, begin by grinding up the flax seeds until they don't look quite as seed-like. Add the walnuts, garlic, parm, salt (start with 1 tsp) and a few grinds of black pepper and grind until it forms a paste. Add the basil, spinach and 2 tbsp of olive oil. Grind until it's a violently green paste.

This makes a very tight pesto which is also good for spreading... This + bread + tomatoes = heaven. For use for pasta, add some of the cooking water and stir. The mixture will turn a lighter green and get looser. With a little vinegar, this also makes a killer base for a cold pasta salad in summer. Freezes well.

Picky Husband Info: This is extremely, extremely green, so this was one of those, "I'm going to trust you on this one" dishes. The walnuts & flax seeds are for extra omega 3 fatty acids, and both have less saturated fat than the usual pine nuts. I use far less cheese than is traditional, but bumped up the olive oil and garlic for extra flavor and antioxidants. I added the spinach to add nutrients, fiber and to stretch the far more expensive basil. Spinach also helps keep this super green... basil-only pesto starts to turn a weird brown color very quickly.

The verdict: omnomnom. Dactyl especially likes this on ravioli.