Herb Pesto -My First AeroGarden Harvest! #AeroGarden

admin

9 years ago

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This AeroGarden post is brought to you in partnership with Kitchen PLAY and all opinions are my own. If you follow me on Instagram ( @BasilmommaHT) then have been watching this progression go from seed pod to plant to plate!

See how we set ours up HERE

We have really enjoyed this whole process. Even my 15 year old who doesn’t seem to be excited by anything that I do sneaks peeks of the plants every day. So you can see, this is a family affair!

This week the area in which I live suffered a very widespread power outage due to wind. All told, we were without power for about 4 hours. When it came back on my AeroGarden ULTRA LED unit came right back on and the LED screen asked if there had been a power outage and if I needed to correct the time. It then picked back up where it left off with no side effects to the plants. Not having to reconfigure all of this was nice.

Since we decided to plant herbs first, I wanted to share one simple and easy way you can enjoy fresh herbs year round- besides as a garnish to meals. Herb Pesto is one of the most versatile condiments you can make. I call it a condiment because I top many things with pesto.

Here are my top 5 favorite ways to use herb pesto:

*Drizzle on pizza or omelets

*Add to spaghetti sauce

*Add to soups and stews

*Bake into breads or biscuits

*Toss with roasted veggies or veggie ‘noodles’

*Dip bread into it (ok- that was 6 but you get the idea here…)

Make sure all herbs are washed and dried and unless otherwise stated, the measuring cup should be loosely packed. If you are planning on storing this in the refrigerator for later use, add a final thin layer of olive oil to the surface to prevent browning.

Herb Pesto

1 ½ C fresh basil, packed

1 C fresh flat leaf parsley

⅓ C fresh oregano (also very good if you sub with cilantro)

⅓ C fresh chives

1 C fresh baby spinach leaves

¼ C pine nuts OR almonds (or no nuts if you prefer)

½ C grated Asiago cheese

½ C grated Parmesan cheese

¾ C olive oil (more or less depending on the consistency you are looking for)

4 cloves garlic (or more if you REALLY like garlic)

pinch salt/fresh black pepper- to taste

1 teaspoon lemon juice

Blend all ingredients in a blender or food processor EXCEPT the oil.

While the container is processing, drizzle in the oil until you get to the consistency you are looking for- or about ¾ cups.

I was able to use the parsley, chives and basil from my AeroGarden ULTRA LED seed pods in this recipe. How cool is that? Not to mention a great way to save all winter long! I had harvest ready herbs in 38 days and full on bushy plants at 48 days.