Carrots and dill go so well together, so why not carrot tops and dill?
My inspiration behind this pesto came along when I was thinning out my carrots in the garden. In previous years, I've always tried to space out my carrot seeds to avoid having to thin them out. It's such a shame to pull out a carrot that hasn't had time to grow! This year however, I sowed my carrot seeds so quickly that I just scattered them among a patch, which means I had to thin them out and pull those tender carrot top greens.
I also learnt this year, that young dill plants are beneficial planted with tomatoes because they improve their flavour and overall growth of the fruits, however, mature dill plants can actually stunt their growth. With that being said, I've been removing any dill that I've been finding among my tomatoes plants.
I haven't had to plant dill in years. It is one of the best herbs that comes back every year. The trick is to scatter those seeds from the dried seed heads in the fall and scatter them into your garden. I've had dill grow just about every where and I just can't get enough of it, by far it is my most favourite herb to grow and to add into just about any dish.
Recipe notes: we do not use oil in the kitchen which means this recipe is oil free. Feel free to switch out the water with oil if you prefer to use oil in your pesto!
You can also substitute the sunflower seeds for traditional pine nuts or any other nuts you would like (I'm allergic to peanuts/nuts, and sunflower seeds are a great alternative!).
Ingredients
1 ½ cups carrot tops
½ cup fresh dill
¼ raw sunflower seeds
3 cloves garlic
½ tbsp nutritional yeast
1 tbsp fresh lemon juice
salt & pepper to taste
5 tbsp water
Directions
Rinse carrot tops and dill really well to remove any dirt and insects.
I used small tender carrot tops but if you are using larger ones, use just the leaves discarding the stems as they can have a bitter taste.
Place all of the ingredients in a food processor and blend until desired consistency.
Use right away, or store in an air tight container and refrigerate for a couple days. This pesto recipe can also be frozen in ice cube trays and used for later in soups, sauces, pizza and dips!
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