Recipes · Wild herbs
Wild Garlic Pesto when the woods smell of garlic
A handful of wild garlic leaves, toasted pine nuts, freshly grated Parmesan, a good olive oil – that's all it takes. Pesto in 15 minutes that tastes of spring, woodland and garlic all at once.
Serving moment · pasta with wild garlic pesto
Ingredients – approx. 2 jars (200 ml)
Makes: approx. 2 jars (200 ml) · Prep: 15 min · Keeps: 2 weeks (chilled)
- For the pesto · 100 g fresh wild garlic leaves (approx. 2 large handfuls) · 50 g pine nuts · 60 g Parmesan or Pecorino (freshly grated) · 120–150 ml good olive oil (extra virgin) · 1 pinch of coarse sea salt · a little black pepper · optional zest of ½ organic lemon
- To serve (pasta for 4) · 500 g tagliatelle, spaghetti or linguine · extra Parmesan to serve · a handful of wild garlic leaves to garnish
All quantities for the stated number of servings – simply double as needed.
How it's made step by step
1 · Wash & dry the wild garlic
Wash the leaves well in cold water, dry gently. The wild garlic must be properly dry, or the pesto turns watery. Cut off thick stalks.
2 · Toast the pine nuts
In a dry pan over medium heat for 3–4 minutes until golden – keep tossing, they burn fast. Remove immediately and cool.
3 · Grate the Parmesan
Grate freshly and finely – not the pre-grated kind, the flavour is worlds apart. Set aside.
4 · Everything in the blender
Put wild garlic, cooled pine nuts, cheese, salt and pepper in the blender. Add the lemon zest now if you like.
Mise en place · ready for the green wonder
5 · Work in the olive oil
Start with about 100 ml oil, blend in short bursts to a paste. Don't over-blend or it turns bitter. Adjust the consistency gradually with more oil.
6 · Season
Taste! Perhaps a little more salt, cheese or lemon. Every wild garlic tastes slightly different.
7 · Fill into jars
Fill clean screw-top jars, smooth the top, pour a thin layer of olive oil over – this seals it airtight. Label, chill.
8 · Serve
Cook the pasta, reserve some cooking water. Stir 3–4 tbsp pesto per person with a little pasta water, fold through the pasta, garnish with Parmesan and wild garlic leaves.
so it turns out perfectly
A few small things make all the difference.
- Identify wild garlic safely · single leaves on their own stem, strong garlic smell. Risk of confusion with lily of the valley (poisonous!) – when in doubt, don't pick
- Foraging season mid-March to early May · before flowering
- Swap pine nuts for cashews, walnuts or almonds
- Blend briefly and add lemon · keeps the green bright
- Freezes in ice-cube trays for up to 6 months
- Also lovely on bruschetta, as a dip or a marinade