Govind's Mutter Paneer
Its that time of the year, when nature comes alive after a long winter. And with spring is also a lot of wild edibles around us which we can forage to add some greens to our diet. Hence, to get some precious greens as early as April, would be to forage and its all free. You can easily forage a few wild edibles and wild garlic is one of them. My favorite way of using this wild edible is with a Wild Garlic Pesto Recipe. Its so easy to make and tastes great.
While enjoying a wonderful warm spring afternoon, we decided to take a walk and go foraging in the near by woods with my 8 year old daughter and her friend. Spring in the mid of April would be the right time to pick Wild Garlic for a Pesto Recipe. It grows in abundance and is native to Europe. We picked a few bags and I made a pesto at night after preparing the leaves.
I am making this pesto the second year. Last year I decided to substitute sunflower seeds instead of pine nuts which are the traditional seeds for Pesto.
Pine nuts are very expensive at the health food store, where as the sunflower seeds I have in abundance in my larder and a lot cheaper. Pine nuts are a little too bitter for my taste. It was an instant hit. This pesto can be stored in the refrigerator for about a couple of weeks.
I am sharing this Wild Garlic Pesto recipe with you.
How to forage for Wild Garlic
The best time to forage for wild garlic is between mid of March till the first week of April. The leaves will have the maximum flavor before they start flowering. The plants usually grow under damp and shade. You will have to look out for the long leaves with a bright color as shown in the photo.
When you find the plant, pick the long leaves that are bright in color as seen in the photo above. Be sure to carefully pick the leaves from close to the ground but make sure to leave the bulb underground and intact for next year. Look out for leaves without bird droppings.
Tips for picking Wild Garlic
The best way to check that you’ve picked wild garlic is to crush the leaves in the palm and take a sniff. If it smells like garlic, then you’ve picked the right plant.
Ingredients
- 50 g of Cashew nuts
- 50 g of wild garlic leaves (washed and dried using a salad dryer )
- Juice of a lemon or 1/2 lemon
- 1 Red Chilli (optional )
- 2 garlic pods
- 100 ml of olive oil
- 1 teaspoon of salt
Cooking Instructions
- First wash the leaves and dry them using a salad dryer.
- Lightly roast the cashew nuts in a heavy pan without any fat.
- Cool the nuts.
- Blitz all the ingredients in a food processor.
- Store in sterilized glass jars.