Cilantro Pesto – Nut-Free & Dairy-Free

We love pizza in this house, it makes an appearance every week on our menu planning chalkboard (thank you Pinterest).  Our favorite topping is pesto and roasted veggies.  Typically we use our dairy-free almond pesto or walnut pesto recipes. But recently we heard about cilantro pesto.

There’s a lovely chef at our local Farmer’s Market who sells all kinds of dips and sauces, and cilantro pesto is one of them.  But I’ve never been brave enough to try it.  I do love cilantro, but a whole bowl of cilantro pesto?

I changed my mind when I was reminded of the benefits of cilantro.  Besides being alkaline and high in antioxidants, did you know that cilantro helps our bodies remove heavy metals? No, not the Ozzy Ozborne type.

Cilantro binds to heavy metals (like mercury and aluminum) and loosens them from our body tissue so they can leave the body.  How fabulous is that?

Pass the cilantro pesto please.

Cilantro Pesto

• 2 cups cilantro, washed and roughly chopped
• ½ cup raw pumpkin seeds (toasted would be good too)
• 3 cloves garlic, chopped
• ¼ cup flax oil
• 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 2 tablespoons of lemon juice
• sea salt and pepper to taste

1. Add cilantro, pumpkin seeds, garlic, flax oil, olive oil, and lemon to the bowl of a food processor or a blender.
2. Puree until it reaches desired consistency.
3. Season with salt and pepper.
4. Serve.

Yield: Approximately 1 cup cilantro pesto

I urge you to try this, it didn’t taste a thing like cilantro.  It just tasted like yummy and garlicky pesto. Put it on your pizza, your sandwich, or your crackers.

I started a new book this week – The Gluten-Free Edge: A Nutrition and Training Guide for Peak Athletic Performance and an Active Gluten-Free Life – you need to get your hands on a copy, it’s fascinating!