We are officially somewhere around one month into this Covid-19 quarantine. The three times weekly runs to the grocery store have dwindled down to once every two weeks. We are certainly paying a lot more attention to what we buy and eat. It’s so important now more than ever to be mindful of food waste and so recipe testing has been a little more of a challenge as I don’t want to throw out any food that didn’t come out as expected.
In addition, keeping our bodies healthy and immune systems strong has been top of mind – especially now that I’m halfway into my pregnancy. Food is medicine and we are actually loving cooking simple, yet nourishing meals at home every day. It’s a team effort for sure though. Johann has been amazing at getting into the kitchen on the days I just can’t peel myself off the couch.
With everything going on now, I also have so much more awareness and respect for the farmers, delivery people and those working the grocery stores than ever before. You just realize how important all of these key players are in providing us with the basic necessities so many of us can take for granted.
This is also a reason that Johann and I decided to start our own vegetable garden (with the help of an amazing organic gardener here in LA.) While, there are so many people that don’t have the space or ability to grow their own food, this is certainly something I do recommend to those that can. Knowing that we can provide for our growing family no matter what is so comforting. I’ll be sharing more about our gardening journey on my IG posts and story highlights.
This brings me to the topic of food waste again. I remember how many times I would find some soggy, limp vegetables at the bottom of the crisper in the fridge and have to throw them out. I would buy little bits of this and that to test a recipe or just use in a recipe and then forget about it while it wilted away. Instead of thinking, “what can I make with what I have?”, I would think “what do I need to get to make what I want?”
These days, my mindset is more of the former. If I only need one portion of broccoli for a stir-fry, I’m already thinking the next day, “what else can I make with the rest of the broccoli?” (of course if I don’t want to eat the same thing – which we do often as well.)
If I have lots of extra herbs leftover and not sure what to do with them, I’ll blitz the in a blender or food processor to make a pesto or chutney.
Lots of extra greens? Sauté with a little olive oil, garlic, salt and pepper for an easy side dish to any meal.
In some ways, all of these social isolation rules can feel restrictive, but in other ways it is forcing me to get more creative and sustainably minded as well – something I will definitely continue to be more conscious of post-quarantine.
This Celery Leaf and Carrot Pesto came about as a result of this. I usually would just toss the tops of carrots and celery in the garbage, but I started to feel like there was something more useful I could do with them. A quick Google search showed me the myriad of ways to use these nutrient-rich greens that don’t often get the spotlight that they should.
I couldn’t believe how good this pesto tasted! It’s a staple any time we buy carrots now! I’ve also used basil and spinach instead of celery leaf and the result is just as delicious. What I love most about making pesto is that you don’t need to stick to any sort of strict ingredient amounts. Just start with about 2 cups of greens, a clove of garlic, a tablespoon of parmesan cheese or nutritional yeast (for vegan), a little salt and about 1/4 cup toasted nuts and blend or process and then drizzle in the olive oil. After this, you can add more of any ingredient you want to get the desired taste and consistency. I also love to add a squeeze of fresh lemon juice to my pestos!
Some of my favorite ways to use pesto are on pasta, pizza, socca flatbreads and my ultimate favorite – avocado toast!
Ingredients: Instructions:
Ingredients
Instructions
