Description

This roasted broccoli pesto is lightened up in two ways by using an avocado instead of olive oil and also by adding water by the tbsp instead of oil to get the ingredients processing smoothly in the food processor. Feel free to sub oil (around 1/2 – 3/4 cup + couple tablespoons) for both of these ingredients if you prefer. The spinach is also an optional [yet very nutritious!] ingredient that does not alter the taste of the pesto. Pine nuts and Cashews work great in this sauce because they are a “creamier” nut – I would not recommend subbing with another nut that might be more difficult to process in the food processor. This pesto will last for up to a week in the fridge in a sealed container. Feel free to freeze some of the pesto to enjoy at a later time.

Ingredients

Scale

3.5 cups broccoli (chopped up in small pieces)
1/2 cup pine nuts or cashews (*roasted chickpeas for a nut-free option)
1 Tbsp Olive Oil (for roasted broccoli)
2–3 cloves garlic
1 ripe avocado (very soft)
1 lemon juiced (4–5 tbsp juice *use half of juice before adding broccoli and nuts and half after)
1 cup fresh basil
2–3 tbsp water or oil by the tbsp (see note)
Sea Salt and Pepper to taste

Optional Ingredients

1 big handful of spinach
sun-dried tomatoes
Tabasco
Cayenne Pepper

Instructions

Pre-heat oven to 425f / 220c
Disperse chopped up broccoli on baking sheet. Drizzle one tablespoon of olive oil evenly over broccoli and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Roast for 10 – 12 minutes in the oven until broccoli is beginning to blacken a bit. Half way through (around 6 minutes in) add the pine nuts onto the baking sheet, evenly dispersed, and roast for 7 minutes until they are turning slightly golden brown.
While the broccoli and pine nuts are roasting in the oven, process garlic, avocado, juice from half a lemon (3 tbsps) and basil in a food processor. The ingredients will start to slowly break down and become slightly creamy.
Take the roasted broccoli and pine nuts out of the oven and leave to cool for about 5 minutes. Add the roasted pine nuts to the food processor and process until you have a creamy mixture. Add the roasted broccoli a few pieces at a time, allowing the broccoli to process a bit before adding more broccoli. Add the juice from the other half of the lemon to help process the broccoli into the pesto mixture. Continue to pulse the roasted broccoli and add water by the tbsp until you have a resulting creamy, fragrant pesto.
Taste and add salt and pepper to taste. Add optional ingredients. If you are adding spinach you will need to process with a couple more tablespoons of water or olive oil.
Devour, Share and Enjoy 🙂

Notes

Nutritional Benefits: A healthy dose of healthy fats, iron, vitamin A, C and potassium!

Prep Time: 25 mins
Category: Dinner
Cuisine: Italian

Nutrition

Serving Size: 12
Calories: 95
Sugar: 1g
Sodium: 46mg
Fat: 8g
Saturated Fat: 1g
Unsaturated Fat: 6g
Trans Fat: 0g
Carbohydrates: 6g
Fiber: 3g
Protein: 3g
Cholesterol: 0mg