Parsley Pesto

One of the problems with having a tiny refrigerator that needs to be run on ice, is that I can't stock up on fresh veggies when I go into town. Yes, eventually I'll dig a root cellar, and eventually I'll have room for a real fridge and electric to run it. But for the moment we've got other priorities. So for the last couple nights we had a bean and chicken chili soup. It was absolutely delicious, but right now I'm craving something fresh and green. No chance that the dinky store in town has fresh basil, but they might carry parsley, so I think I'll make some of that next time I go into town.

Parsley Pesto

2 packed cups fresh parsley stems and all (about 2 bunches)
1/2 cup fresh grated Parmesan, Romano or Asiago cheese
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
1/3 cup pine nuts, walnuts or almonds
3 cloves garlic
Grated rind of one lemon
Salt and fresh-cracked black pepper to taste.
1 tablespoon lemon juice (or to taste)

With a blender:

Whirl the nuts in your blender till they create a fine "sand". Dump the nut-flour into a seperate bowl. Chop the garlic, parsley and lemon rind, in your blender. With the blender running, pour in the oil in a fine stream. Add the parsley mixture to the nut flour and stir in your cheese. Season with salt and pepper, then add lemon juice to taste. Salt will make the the lemon juice taste more lemony, so add the lemon juice last.

Makes about 1 cup.

Spoon onto pasta, or eat on toasted bread. Or stuff the pesto under the skin of a chicken, then roast.

If you have leftovers (I rarely do) you can put it in a jar, cover it with a light film of olive oil and keep it in the fridge for a week.