How to Make Homemade Pesto All Year Long

If you've read other posts on making fresh pesto, you'll know that most focus on making large batches while basil is in season (spring/summer) and freezing it in ice cubes to use during the long winter months. That's dandy and all if you're drowning in basil leaves from your homegrown plants, but some of us 1) don't have the right natural light to grow them and 2) aren't overachieving Type As. So if you don't have a freezer full of pesto cubes, don't feel deprived. 

What many people might not realize is that pesto is already chock full of other flavorful ingredients (nuts, cheese, oil, garlic, lemon) so you can easily swap out the basil for other seasonal greens and it will taste equally good! I didn't make pesto for the longest time because I thought I had to have a food processor (I've never owned one) and pine nuts are expensive.

Then I found out I could swap in other nuts and use a blender. I've been making a small batch almost weekly since then, usually for a quick pasta dish, but pesto is also amazing spread on sandwiches, meats or veggies. It works great as great dip, but my spicy roasted red pepper dip beats it by a long shot. All in all, pesto is pretty darn versatile, thus perfect for whipping up a fast weeknight meal.

Roasted Brussels Sprouts and Broccoli

One of my favorite ways to cook cruciferous vegetables like broccoli, cauliflower, and brussels sprouts is roasting. In fact, I'm having a hard time thinking of a veggie that wouldn't taste amazing roasted.

All it takes is a liberal drizzling of cooking oil, a sprinkling of your favorite seasonings, and a quick trip into the oven, which leaves the veggies fork tender with bits of the outside slightly charred. This equates to a ton of flavor...even for unpopular veggies like brussels sprouts.

I know lots of folks like to pair brussels sprouts with bacon to make them more edible for picky eaters, but for situations where not everyone does meat, this seasoning combo is fantastic! The main stars are the fresh lemon juice nutritional yeast. They add a brightness and "cheesy-ness" that really compliment one another. 

If you don't have any nutritional yeast on hand, you can substitute parmesan cheese instead, although it'll have a slightly different flavor.

Perhaps my favorite thing about this recipe (and roasting) is that it only takes about 20 minutes to cook the veggies. So, you can prep and season them in a few minutes, pop them in the oven, then work on a quick main course like pan-fried chicken breast, salmon, or even bone-in pork chops. 

This roasted brussels sprouts & broccoli dish is also tasty enough to serve alongside a big feast like Thanksgiving! It's also good to have more vegetable side dish options, right? 

Roasted Brussels Sprouts & Broccoli (Vegan & Vegetarian)
Oven-roasted brussels sprouts and broccoli with lemon juice, garlic, and nutritional yeast. This quick side dish recipe is flavorful, healthy, filling, and full of fiber and extra protein. If you don't have access to nutritional yeast, substitute parmesan cheese. 
Serves: 3-4

Ingredients
1/2 a medium head of broccoli, cut into small florets (approximately 3 cups)
12-15 brussels sprouts, halved or quartered
2 tablespoon of cooking oil (I prefer genuine extra virgin olive oil or coconut oil)
3 tablespoons of fresh lemon juice, plus more for drizzling
2 cloves of garlic, minced
1 1/2 tablespoons of nutritional yeast, plus more for garnishing after cooking (sub parmesan cheese if you don't have any nutritional yeast)
1 1/2 teaspoons of garlic powder
3/4 teaspoon of crushed red pepper (optional)
Sea salt, to taste (I love THIS)
Black pepper, to taste

Recommended Equipment

large rimmed baking sheet or roasting pan

Directions

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Chop the broccoli  into small florets and the brussels sprouts into halves or quarters, discarding the woody ends. Smash, peel, and mince two garlic cloves. Place the broccoli and brussels sprout pieces close together in the middle of a baking sheet or roasting pan. Drizzle with cooking oil and the fresh lemon juice. Sprinkle minced garlic, garlic powder, nutritional yeast, crushed red pepper, sea salt, and black pepper onto the vegetables. 

Mix everything together with your hands or a spatula to incorporate the seasonings. Spread the mixture out evenly in pan, making sure there's space between the veggies. Roast for 20-25 minutes or until the veggies are tender and have crisped up a bit. Remove from the oven, top with extra nutritional yeast and lemon juice, to taste, and serve immediately.


I'd like to hear from YOU!

What's your favorite way to cook brussels sprouts? Do you have any tips for making them taste better to everyone?

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Keep Reading! More Posts From The Rising Spoon:

• Balsamic Oven-Roasted Green Beans
• Turmeric Roasted Potatoes (That Taste Like Mac & Cheese!)
• Easy Coconut Rice with Coconut Milk
• Roasted Beet Slices with Fleur de Sel
• Pan-Fried Asparagus with Butter & Parmesan

PAID ENDORSEMENT DISCLOSURE: In order for me to support my blogging activities, I may receive monetary compensation or other types of remuneration for my endorsement, recommendation, testimonial and/or link to any products or services from this blog. However, I ONLY recommend helpful products that I myself would use. And I'm really picky about what I share with you guys. Because I myself am super choosy about what I buy and consume. Recommending products that I love or want to own helps me cover the costs of running this blog and keep providing you with free, helpful information. And it costs nothing extra for you. Thanks!

Roasted Red Bell Peppers Stuffed with Cous Cous, Turkey Sausage, Kale, Feta & Tomatoes

If you follow me on Instagram or Facebook, I'm sure you noticed I've been obsessed with stuffed vegetable dishes for the past several months. Especially roasted peppers (chiles) and baked acorn squash stuffed with brown rice and other goodies. 

I made today's dish about a month ago, but wanted to wait til all the sugar-plum holiday madness died down to post the recipe. Cause it's pretty darn healthy and I knew ya'll wouldn't think twice about it when you're full steam over-drive into cookie, candy and fudge-noshing. 

However, since it is now past the new year, I know many folks are wrapped up in health conscious pursuits, so it's the perfect time to share my newest stuffed veggie concoction, plus a list of ingredients to inspire your own mixtures. 

Stuffed dishes are an amazing way to combine vegetables, healthy carbs and protein all in one dish. Plus they're incredibly flexible. 

Mix together one or more things from each category (see examples below), plus some spices and extra veggies and you're bound to have a healthy, tasty meal. 

Spicy Turkey Chili Soup + How to Make Homemade Spicy Taco Seasoning

Now that I've created my obligatory Best of 2012, plus Saturday's Recommendations From A Bibliophile: Christmas 2012 Edition post, it's time for the first recipe of 2013!

Wanna guess what it is? 

If you read my last post, you'll already know. 

::drumroll::

It's my own adaptation of Skinnytaste's Turkey Chili Taco Soup!

Like I said before, it's amazing! I could hardly wait to post about it. Especially since it was received so positively on my Instagram account. I've already messaged one friend on Facebook with recipe details so she can make it for her boyfriend, so I figured I needed to write about it here ASAP. After all, it is a lean and healthy chili and lots of folks seek out lower-carb recipes this time of year.

Since I used homemade chicken stock and taco seasoning, I think my version is even better than the original. (Sorry, Gina!) Aside from that, I added twice as much taco seasoning, swapped out some veggies, left out certain ingredients and piled on a few different toppings. 

My version is quite a bit spicier than the Skinnytaste recipe (since my homemade taco seasoning has cayenne and crushed red pepper), but I think this makes the dish special. Since it calls for lean ground turkey and mostly veggies, there's hardly any fat or carbs, so you want a lot of flavor, and the slight spiciness elevates it from a normal chili or soup!  

And if you make it with or without changes—do tell! If you share your variations, it'll give me ideas for next time. Plus, I want to know how it turned out. :)

The Best of 2012: Top Recipes From The Rising Spoon Kitchen

I used Kit Seaton's Moss Green Handmade Paper for the background in this image.

Welcome to 2013, my fellow foodies. Does it feel different living one year further into the future? That depends on your state of mind. January 1st can either represent an automated, meaningless tick forward on your calendar or a chance for change and renewal. 

When it comes to genuine, long-term changes that will stick, I always support small goals rather than lofty, grandiose plans. There's nothing wrong with large-scale goals—they're dreams, after all, and I'm a romantic, life-long supporter of positive thinking and imagination—but their enormity imparts distance between the ultimate goal and the person achieving it. As long as your goal is massive and unattainable in the present, you'll always consider it something for in the future or in the long run, which doesn't hold you accountable for anything. 

The best way to combat this is to divide your long-term goal(s) into multiple smaller goals, then further subdivide them into individual, easily achievable tasks. Set a monthly, weekly or daily plan for yourself and when you begin to accomplish the smaller actions, you'll feel a sense of accomplishment (that boosts productivity) and be well on your journey to attaining the end goal. 

Or you could stick your nose in book after book, live in your head where fictional worlds collide and coexist, occasionally dream of future aspirations, then write about them in your journal. That's what my 13 year old self would recommend. In the end, you'd have a stellar vocabulary and reading comprehension, decent writing skills, plus a vivid imagination. In other words, a recipe for awesomeness. Your choice, though.