I have for you today a recipe for an emerald-green turnip pesto that's drizzled over some whole wheat pasta and mixed up with sweet, golden, roasted turnips and earthy mushrooms. Divine.
I got a bunch of gorgeous turnips at the market over the weekend, and they looked so good, I almost didn't want to cut them up. Except that I did, because I wanted to eat them even more than I wanted to just stare at them.
I had been craving a pesto for a while, and the beautiful greens of the little white turnips looked perfect for the job. Turnip greens are just a little tough and slightly bitter, so I blanched them before throwing them into the food processor with a handful of walnuts, garlic, some red pepper flakes, salt and a smidgen of extra virgin olive oil.
I love my pasta to have a number of different textures and flavors in each bite, so into the mix I added some chopped, roasted walnuts and some lip-puckering capers. I've always loved capers in my pasta, but of late I have been joined by Jay who thinks they are "delicious" and would snack on them from the jar if I allowed him to.
Here's the recipe. And before I sign off, do follow me on Instagram! I've had an Instagram account for years but it lay dormant until recently, because I juggle so many things besides this blog that any extra time for anything new is hard to find. But although late to the party, I've discovered I rather love this visual social media platform and intend to keep up with it from now on. I'd love to have you along.
Also, coming up, I'll have some Thanksgiving recipes to share with you, so stay tuned. Ciao for now!
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Pasta with Turnip Pesto
Ingredients
- 6 small turnips (greens coarsely chopped, turnips cut into a ½-inch dice)
- 1 pound pasta (any small shape would work)
- ¼ cup walnuts
- 2 cloves garlic (crushed and minced)
- ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes
- 1 ½ tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
- Salt to taste
- 12 crimini mushrooms (or button mushrooms, sliced)
- 2 tablespoon capers
- Salt and ground black pepper to taste
Instructions
- Cook the pasta until al dente.
- Heat a pot of water to boiling point. Add the turnip greens and let them cook for a minute. Turn off the heat, drain and rinse the greens.
- Add the greens to a food processor along with the walnuts, garlic, red pepper flakes, olive oil and salt. Blitz into a fine paste.
- Place the chopped turnips on a baking sheet sprayed with oil. Season with salt and pepper and roast in a preheated 425-degree oven about 30 minutes or until golden and tender.
- Heat the remaining 1 teaspoon of extra virgin olive oil in a saucepan and roast the mushrooms over medium-high heat until golden and tender.
- In a large bowl, mix the pasta, pesto, roasted turnips and mushrooms, and capers. Add more salt or ground black pepper to taste.
Valerie Zemba
Hello,
I am currently working on a roundup post for my website, Very Vegan Val, and was hoping to include one of your recipes. The post is on vegan recipes using different bitter greens, and I thought your recipe for Pasta with Turnip Green Pesto would be perfect.
I wanted to ask permission to use one image from this post, that may be cropped slightly to be included in a collage to use on social media. I would include the title and perhaps a short description with the image, and link back to your original recipe [do follow], giving you full credit.
Please let me know if this is something you would be alright with!
Best,
Valerie
Vaishali
Yes that's fine! Thanks for including and checking!
Ambica
What a great way to use up turnip greens. I was inspired and made a pesto with Radish greens over the weekend. I am going to try it with beet green next.Thanks for the recipe.
Vaishali Honawar
Hi Ambica, great idea to use radish greens.