Ingredients:

• Kale (1 head, de-stemmed and hand ripped)
• Salad Greens (2 handfulls)
• Broccoli (1 head)
• Carrot (2-3 carrots sliced, you can shred too if you prefer)
• Cucumbers (1 cucumber sliced or half moon)
• Bell Peppers (1 sliced)
• Dill (handful, chopped)
• Avocado (2, chunked)
• Nuts (optional) -- (I used 1/4 cup chopped cashews but you could use pecans, walnuts, almond, whatever you prefer)
• Dried Cranberries (option) -- (1 used 1/4 cup but you can use goji berries or golden raisins, whatever you like prefer)

I typically mixed the greens and herbs together to make a well blended base for the salad then assemble the remaining ingredients on top.  I strongly recommend hand massaging a dressing into the salad and letting it sit for a few minutes before eating as kale can take a few moments to integrate the dressing.  Vic made a delicious dressing recipe to explore below.  Remember to swap out ingredients you may not like for ones you prefer.  These recipes are always just a template to explore.  Have fun!

Ingredients:

• fresh chopped parsley  (3 cups)
• fermented garlic from our 2021 harvest (9 cloves)
• fresh garlic scapes (handful)
• garlic powder from our 2022 harvest (2-3 teaspoons)
• dried oregano from our 2021 harvest (3-4 teaspoons)
• dried chilli flakes (2-3 teaspoons)
• dried chilli powder (2-3 teaspoons)
• salt (1-2 teaspoons)
• pepper (1/4-1/2 teaspoon)
• white wine OR red wine vinegar (1/4 cup)
• garlic ferment starter (1/4 cup)
• extra virgin olive oil EVOO (1.5-2 cups+)

Instructions:

• Chop up parsley. Set aside.
• Chop up garlic cloves and garlic scape; stir in garlic powder. Set aside.
• Mix by hand the parsley and garlic blend together in a bowl.  (This can also be combined in a food processor.) 
• Add chilli flakes, chilli powder, oregano, salt, pepper, garlic ferment starter and vinegar together with the parsley/garlic mixture 1 of 2 ways outlined below…
  • FOOD Processor or Immersion Blender Instructions: (If you are using a food processor/immersion blender mix together on low for a few moments then begin to slowly add EVOO until blended to the consistency you prefer. Note this may require being done in batches depending on size of food processor / immersion blender.)
  • HAND Blended Instructions: (If you are not using a food processor, you can use a whisk while slowly incorporating the EVOO into the chimichurri mixture.
• Put into a container and add a little EVOO on top before closing the lid and storing in the fridge for use over 2+ weeks.

Chimichurri can be used in a variety of ways. Some suggestions are as a marinade, a sauce topping, a base for a vinaigrette, an addition to scrambled eggs and more. What’s one of your favorite ways to eat/use chimichurri?

Begin by preparing the spearmint and parsley by washing and de-stemming them. Set them aside together in a bowl (like the first picture on the left above).

Using a food processor, lightly blend the mint and parsley together. Set aside in the same bowl.

Gather your scapes (pictured in the second picture in the middle above).

Using a food processor, lightly blend the scapes. Add to the bowl of blended mint and parsley. Set aside.

Using a food processor, lightly blend the almonds, pistachios and cashews (as shown in the first picture directly above on the left).  Add to the bowl of blended mint, parsley and garlic scapes. Mix it all together with a spatula until it's all well incorporated. Set aside.

Spoon the blend of mint, parsley, scapes and nuts into the food processor.  You can do this step in stages/phases; no need to fit it all into the food processor in one turn.  

Secure the top of the food processor and begin to slowly blend or pulse the mixture while slowly pouring in a few splashes of garlic scape ferment starter liquid (the liquid that is in the jar of garlic scapes).  I'd  say at least 1/3 of a cup per food processor cycle.  Set garlic scape ferment started aside.  Once that is complete begin to add the extra virgin olive oil very slowly as well. Use up to a half a cup of olive oil,

As you blend stop every so often to taste the flavors in the pesto and consistency.  Do you feel like you need more oil, ferment starter or to add more of the mixture of mint, pesto, scape, parsley? This new personal preferences.  You can even transfer at this point to a blender for those who like a more  processed.  (View the pic below:)
​
​Gather your ball jars.  
Spoon the pesto in the jar and cover with a thin layer of olive oil then refrigerate.  ,  

You may have noticed that the ingredients don't have measurements or amounts next to them.  That's largely in part because I see recipes as templates for exploration.  I also believe that we all have preferences; I may like a more creamy pesto, you may like a chunky one.  You may like a pesto without spices and I may like a pesto that does contain spices.  Let this be that opportunity to not be confined by exacts numbers and measurements and instead be held by your intuition.

With that in mind I generally follow a general rubric of:

• 2 cups -- Spearmint (wild grown from the homestead gardens)
• 2 cups -- Parsley
• 1 Garlic Scapes (homestead grown and fermented from 2022's summer harvest)
• 1/3 cup -- Cashews
• 1/3 cup -- Almonds
• 1/3 cup --Pistachios
• 1/3 cup -- Extra Virgin Olive Oil (to begin with, you can add more as needed.)
  
• Spices (optional; I used a touch of salt as well as garlic and herb spices)
• Ferment starter (from fermented garlic scapes)​

If you have any questions let us know!
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