Garlic Scape Pesto

First, what is a scape? 

If you find these in your CSA basket, you are in for a treat! The scape is a form of garlic that is a circular almost serpentine shape with a flower head on one end. This is the seed pod of the garlic. Cutting it off diverts energy into growing a bigger garlic bulb. Using this part of the plant is growing in popularity due to the flavor and versatility in dishes; ways to use these range from fermenting, pickling, grilling, and adding to stir fry. Our favorite way to preserve these is to make pesto. I freeze the harvest until all my basil is ready. ⁣

Ingredients

10 Garlic Scapes

¾ cup shredded parm cheese

½ cup walnuts

1 ½ cups basil

¾ cup olive oil

1 TBLS lemon juice 

Instructions

• I rough chop the scapes and put them in my vitamix. A food processor will work just as good.

• Add walnuts, parm cheese, basil leaves, lemon juice and lots of good quality olive oil.

• Puree until smooth. ⁣