This was delicious, and the perfect color to raise flagging February spirits. I also have to say that, with the help of the inspiration recipe below, I seem to have inadvertently invented a next stage pesto for picky children: the flavors are all really children friendly and the back notes of peanut are a known quality from PB&J sandwiches. It is also a good dish to have in one's repertoire for vegetarian or vegan friends as it contains no cheese. It also contains very little fat: I used acorn squash puree and pasta water to loosen the pesto, rather than the usual oil.
This really was lovely combined with pasta, but would also make a very delicious and vibrant topping for roasted vegetables such as acorn squash rings or carrots.
2 bunches collard greens, ribs and stems removed (use them in soup or to make vegetable stock), about 3 cups of greens
1/2 cup dry roasted peanuts (salted is fine)
1/2 cup mint (leaves only)
1/4 cup coriander (leaves only)
1/2 cup cooked acorn squash flesh
1 Tbsp lime juice
1 1/2 tsps hot sauce
4 portions of pasta of your choice (I used fresh pappardelle)
Salt to taste
1 or 2 ladles of pasta water to get the mixture to the right pesto consistency
Bring a large pot of salted water to the boil and add the collard green leaves. Blanch them for 30 seconds and then remove them from the pot with tongs, straight into a large bowl full of water and ice cubes. Reserve the boiling water for cooking your pasta and start cooking it as soon as the water comes to a boil (unless you are cooking fresh pasta which only takes a minute or so and should therefore only be started when your pesto is made). Cook the pasta for 30 seconds less than the instructions on the package as it will finish cooking in the sauce
Drain the collard greens and set aside.
Blend the peanuts and acorn squash together until they form a smooth paste.
Add half the collard greens and blend again. Add the remaining collard greens, the hot sauce and the lime juice and blend again.
Add the herbs and a ladleful of pasta water and blend again. You a re aiming for a smooth, pesto consistency so you may need a bit more to fully loosen up the mixture.
Taste and adjust salt, lime juice and heat to your personal preference.
Drain your pasta when ready and return to the pan with half of the pesto and stir with tongs to ensure that the noodles are each coated with sauce. Add more if needed. The remainder, as mentioned above, tastes great on root veggies.
Serve topped with spicy acorn squash rings for color contrast.
Inspiration recipe, here.
Comments