Winter Pesto

Pesto is one of my favorite flavors on earth. Patrick and I were lucky to travel through Italy this summer and we enjoyed fresh pesto everywhere we possibly could. There are plenty of jarred varieties here in the United States, but they just don’t compete with the fresh pesto flavor you can achieve by making it at home. Since many ingredients in pesto are summer harvest vegetables, and we try to eat as seasonally as possible here at Revolutionary Chef, I decided to try my hand at a Winter Pesto. And I’m pleased to say it is delizioso!

What Makes Winter Pesto Revolutionary?

1. Future 50 Foods and Water Use

Winter pesto includes spinach and walnuts, both of which are Future 50 Foods. The list includes spinach because of its fast growing nature and ability to grow in cooler climates all year. Additionally, it is chock full of healthy vitamins and minerals.

I was initially a bit surprised to see walnuts on the list. While I knew walnuts were high in nutritional value, they can also be quite water-intensive — a criticism we hear a lot in California where we struggle with climate-fueled droughts.

Walnuts aren’t unique in their water requirements. Almost all nuts are quite water intensive to grow. This isn’t an issue when nuts are grown in places where water is plentiful (e.g., macadamia nuts in tropical Hawaii). But other nuts like almonds, walnuts, and pistachios are often grown in places where water resources are stressed, like California. This is one of the main reasons I switched from almond milk to oat milk, which is less water intensive.

That said, while nuts have had the negative spotlight shined on them in recent years, most of the agricultural water in California is actually going to producing alfalfa. What the heck is alfalfa used for, you ask? Hay! Hay grown for animal feed. In addition to the water going to alfalfa for animal feed, the third largest water consumer in California is pasture land for cows. So while almonds, pistachios, and other nuts are major water consumers in our drought-stricken state, they are better options than meat (particularly beef) and dairy.

On balance, given the extraordinarily high nutritional benefits of walnuts, I can see how these nuts made it onto the Fortune 50 .

2. In-Season Produce for Winter Pesto

Most pesto uses basil and pine nuts as its base. Winter Pesto uses spinach, parsley, and walnuts instead, all of which can be harvested in the winter months in the Northern Hemisphere.

3. Vegan

Most pesto includes parmesan or pecorino cheese in the recipe. While this cheese certainly adds some flavor to the pesto, I’ve found it pretty easy to omit it to make the recipe vegan. The main thing you have to do is add additional salt since parmesan cheese is quite salty. A little extra salt, garlic, and a couple shakes of nutritional yeast and I quickly forget any need for cheese.

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4. Bulk Buying for Winter Pesto

Many of the ingredients in the recipe can be bought without packaging. Ideally you can get the spinach, parsley, and garlic without packaging from your produce section. Please consider skipping the plastic bags the store offers and bringing your own reusable produce bags. You can also just place produce directly into your shopping bag or grocery cart.

You may be able to find walnuts in the bulk bins, if your store has any. Finally, if you have a really conscious market near you, there may even be a spot to get olive oil on tap!

Try this Winter Pesto on pasta, pizza, roasted vegetables, or as a dip for your favorite crackers. You really can’t go wrong! Enjoy!