The world is looking pretty different these days. In a matter of weeks we have gone from a carefree society, happy to indulge our needs with no worries beyond making daily choices, suffering only from the sheer madness of unlimited options. Now, dire concerns cycle through our thoughts and conversations. How often should I venture out of my home, what’s safe for me and others? What foods do I have on hand, do I have enough for my family? Am I sick, or is this just my usual bout with seasonal allergies? When will this end, how will it end for me and my loved ones? This is how it feels, at least. I take pause and remember that yesterday contained plenty of questions, and yet today those questions feel so much simpler, manageable even. How I long for yesterday.
It’s easy for me to fall into these thought spirals and they can be paralyzing. It’s time to recycle an old mantra. I am strong, I will get through this. Let’s add we are resilient, we will persevere. When I look out at humanity through the fog, I see so many shining examples of strength. I see people singing to each other from their balconies, I see people reaching out to their neighbors to offer help and I see people dancing outside together, albeit a safe 6-10 feet away. We are laughing, helping, connecting and surviving. The road may yet be long, but we will make this manageable together.
Manageable. I’ve realized that this is our key word. How can I make today manageable? Where can I focus my energy in place of draining my reserves on factors I cannot control? One of the best places that I can think of to gain control of my own conversation is of course in the kitchen. Cooking and baking allow me to slip into a state of meditation. I focus on the task at hand and the rest of the world melts away for a while. I also find power in making nourishing meals that will benefit the body and also in making indulgent dishes that will lift the soul. It’s an act of preservation and passion all at the same time. I’ve also recently found this as a way to connect. I decided to go live as I made some Irish inspired soda bread on St. Patrick’s Day and was so touched by everyone that joined in and commented. We’re amazing and we will always find a way.
Without further ado today’s recipe is a lovely twist on pesto. This is accidentally vegan and also encourages the use of leftover greens in your fridge. I designed this recipe around leftover beet greens that would otherwise have been discarded and in times like this it seems important to practice reducing waste as much as possible. If you have a different green to use feel free to sub it in. You could use kale, spinach collard greens or whatever else you would like to experiment with!
Beet Green Pesto
Equipment
- food processor
Ingredients
- 1 cup raw walnuts
- 2 cups beet greens, packed be sure to wash and dry them well – see note
- 6 oz olive oil
- 2 oz miso paste 2 tbsp or 60g
- 1 clove garlic, crushed
- zest from one lemon
- ½ tsp sea salt I used gray salt for more minerality
Instructions
- Toast your walnuts. This can be done in a skillet or shallow pan over low to medium heat or in a 350 degree oven for 6-8 minutes. Set aside to cool once toasted.
- Add all ingredients except oil to a food processor or blender.
- Blend and stream in olive oil until you’ve reached your desired consistency taking care to scrape the sides of the bowl down occasionally to make sure all ingredients are well incorporated.
- Store in the fridge with a little olive oil poured on top of the pesto in order to minimize oxidization.
Beautiful words, Christina. Thanks for your honesty of the situation and for reminding us of the light. Your description of cooking and baking is very soothing. I look forward to testing out this recipe once I go for my next grocery pick-up. I have a feeling miso is going to be a game-changer!