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Garlic Scape Pesto

June 16, 2015 By Rachel 29 Comments

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One CSA item I get super excited about every season is garlic scapes. I have to admit, the first time I brought them home I thought they looked extraterrestrial, but after a few seasons I have come to love them. Garlic scapes are the tender stems and flowers of hard-neck garlic plants. They have a milder and sweeter garlic flavor. For me, they have come to taste like “summer” garlic since we get them early in the season. As fall approaches the bulbs mature and we get traditional garlic.

garlic-scapes

Despite it’s unusually wild appearance, garlic scapes are quite versatile. The whole scape can be sautéed or grilled. The flower can be removed, as pictured below, and the stem can be chopped and used in recipes in place of traditional garlic. It also makes a great pesto! This week I’ll be posting a few garlic scape recipes, so if you’re aiming to learn how to use this unusual vegetable then stay tuned!

trimming-garlic-scapes

For today I have Garlic Scape Pesto. This recipe is easy to prepare and it makes a mild and sweet pesto, which like traditional basil pesto, is pretty versatile. Keep it simple and serve with pasta or zucchini noodles. It also makes a great marinade for seafood and chicken!

pesto-in-food-processor

scoop-garlic-scape-pesto

jar-garlic-scape-pesto

garlic-scape-ingredients

Garlic Scape Pesto
 
Print
Prep time
20 mins
Total time
20 mins
 
Garlic Scape Pesto is made from the tender stems of garlic which has a mild and sweet garlic flavor. Use as traditional pesto on pasta or as a marinade.
Author: Rachel Hanawalt
Recipe type: Sauce
Cuisine: Italian
Serves: 6
Ingredients
  • ⅔ C diced garlic scapes
  • ⅓ C extra virgin olive oil
  • ⅓ C freshly grated parmesan-reggiano
  • ¼ C raw pistachios
  • 2 Tbsp fresh lemon juice
  • 2-4 Tbsp water
  • salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
  1. Prep your ingredients by dicing your garlic scapes, grating your parmesan-reggiano, and squeezing your lemon.
  2. Combine your garlic scapes, parmesan-regginao, pistachios and lemon juice in a food processor and process at a medium speed until they are roughly chopped. Continue to run the food processor and slowly pour your olive oil in through the opening on the lid of the food processor. Process until all of the ingredients are very finely chopped and beginning to become smooth. If the pesto seems a little thick add 2-4 Tbsp of water until the desired thickness is achieved.
  3. Finally, stir in salt and pepper to taste. For a basic recipe, serve on pasta or zucchini noodles.
3.3.3077

garlic-scape-pesto-nutrition

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Filed Under: Dressings and Sauces, Recipes Tagged With: CSA, Garlic, Garlic Scapes, Gluten-Free, Lemons, Olive Oil, parmesan-reggiano, pasta, Pesto, Pistachios, Vegetarian, Zucchini Noodles

« Chopped Plum Salad
Garlic Scape Pesto Crostini »

Comments

  1. Diane says

    July 10, 2015 at 1:30 am

    Yum! Garlic scapes are so good in salad and they look fabulous in this pesto too! Where is my spoon?

    Reply
    • Rachel says

      July 13, 2015 at 7:59 am

      Thanks Diane! I admit that I licked the spoon after making this recipe!

      Reply
  2. Amanda@ChewTown says

    July 10, 2015 at 3:09 am

    I love scape, but I rarely cook with it. I think I need to pick up a bunch. Love the use of pistachio in this!

    Reply
    • Rachel says

      July 13, 2015 at 8:00 am

      I thought the pistachios made this recipe. I love experimenting with different nuts in pestos!

      Reply
  3. Insanely Roy says

    July 10, 2015 at 5:42 am

    I am on my way to the market and i will look for garlic scape. I have been trying a lot of snack ideas recently, a batch of this as dip could save me so nuch time.
    thanks 🙂

    #weeklyChallenge for #FoodBloggers @ http://pieceofcerebrum.wordpress.com

    Reply
  4. Claudia | Gourmet Project says

    July 10, 2015 at 5:52 am

    must try, looks delicious!

    Reply
    • Rachel says

      July 13, 2015 at 8:22 am

      Thanks Claudia!

      Reply
  5. Amanda @ The Chunky Chef says

    July 10, 2015 at 9:20 am

    I love this interesting pesto!! The pistachios are awesome 🙂 Can’t wait to try this out!

    Reply
    • Rachel says

      July 13, 2015 at 8:23 am

      Thanks Amanda! It’s fun trying out different pestos!

      Reply
  6. Rachel @ athletic avocado says

    July 10, 2015 at 12:05 pm

    I love how you used pistachios in this instead of pine nuts! Looks amazing 🙂

    Reply
    • Rachel says

      July 13, 2015 at 8:24 am

      Thanks Rachel!

      Reply
  7. Prash @ YummilyYours says

    July 11, 2015 at 3:37 pm

    I have seen green garlic at my local grocery store but haven’t bought it for the lack of a good recipe. Now, I have one! 🙂

    Reply
    • Rachel says

      July 13, 2015 at 8:36 am

      Thanks Prash! The more subtle flavor of green garlic is something not to be missed!

      Reply
  8. Michelle@healthiersteps says

    July 14, 2015 at 11:04 pm

    I love garlic so I’m sure I’ll love scape. Your pesto looks perfect, I can’t wait to try it!

    Reply
    • Rachel says

      July 15, 2015 at 8:29 am

      Thanks for the complement Michelle!

      Reply
  9. Heather says

    July 15, 2015 at 8:41 pm

    I have never heard of scapes before!! Where rock have I been under? This recipe looks amazing and I love every single ingredient so I know I am going to LOVE this! Thanks for a great recipe!!

    Reply
    • Rachel says

      July 15, 2015 at 10:42 pm

      Don’t feel bad! I had never heard of garlic scapes until I joined a CSA!

      Reply
  10. Fareeha says

    July 16, 2015 at 10:18 am

    Wow ! I’m sure this will taste amazing with zucchini noodles.

    Reply
    • Rachel says

      July 16, 2015 at 11:31 am

      It does, and I love zucchini noodles!

      Reply
  11. Kelly @ TastingPage says

    June 27, 2016 at 4:53 pm

    I love garlic scapes and don’t get to eat them enough. What a great idea to pair them with pistachios for this pesto!

    Reply
    • Rachel says

      August 10, 2016 at 9:07 pm

      Garlic scape season is far to short! Fortunately this recipe can easily be frozen for enjoying all year long!

      Reply
  12. laura@motherwouldknow says

    June 27, 2016 at 10:44 pm

    I’ve never had garlic scapes but I’m dying to try them. Next time I go to the farmers’ market, I’ll have to look for them. Your pesto looks amazing and it’s a beautiful use for this fascinating vegetable.

    Reply
    • Rachel says

      August 10, 2016 at 9:06 pm

      Thanks Laura! Garlic scapes are totally worth a try. They’re better than garlic!

      Reply
  13. Jennifer says

    July 9, 2018 at 2:32 pm

    I bought some garlic scapes at the local farmer’s market, and not knowing what to do with them, I stumbled upon this recipe. This was so simple and so delicious. My pesto came out thick (I used a ninja rather than a food processor) and I put it on some pita with a fresh cucumber, Greek yogurt, and lime salad on top and it was delicious. Thank you for sharing. I will definitely make this again.

    Reply
    • Rachel says

      September 23, 2018 at 12:54 pm

      Glad you liked it! Your greek inspired paring with it sounds awesome!

      Reply
  14. Bill OConnell says

    June 18, 2021 at 7:31 pm

    Does he pesto grated parm need to be the fluffy stuff or the more solid like at an Italian Rest?

    Reply
    • Rachel says

      June 20, 2021 at 3:49 pm

      Hi Bill- The key is that you use fresh parm from the refrigerator section (not the Kraft stuff that comes in a green shaker bottle). I used the shredded parm in this recipe, but the fluffy, grated stuff will work too as long as its fresh. I hope that helps!

      Reply

Trackbacks

  1. garlic scapes | cycle farm kitchen says:
    June 18, 2015 at 5:10 pm

    […] on Epicurious. Or you might try mixing things up with pistachios and lemon, as in this recipe for Garlic Scape Pesto from SimpleSeasonal – thanks, Rebecca, for sharing this one. Oh […]

    Reply
  2. CSA Newsletter–June 27-29, 2017 says:
    June 29, 2017 at 10:53 pm

    […] you don’t know the garlic scape, Simple and Seasonal has all the info, including how to prepare this pesto (with […]

    Reply

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Hi, I'm Rachel! Welcome to Simple Seasonal, a resource for simple, healthful, and delicious recipes that help you make the most of seasonal produce from your local farmer's market, CSA, or home garden. Simple Seasonal is committed to a whole foods diet. With an occasional cookie... ;)


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