Mushroom Linguine in Carrot Top Pesto

The story of the Carrot top pesto

If you have been following us on Instagram, you know that I’ve been going to one of the local Farmers’ Markets on Fridays in search for some gorgeous organic produce. I tend to go a bit overboard when I see so many kinds of vegetables, cheeses, herbs and even potted plants! So on my first trip to the market, I bought everything I could carry and since we are just two people in the house, these goodies lasted us well over a week.

I bought 2 bunches of Kulfa (Purslane), 2 corn cobs, half a kilo or maybe more of beans, 2 bunches of gorgeous carrots with loads of leaves on the top, 2 small heads of red/purple cabbage, a big bunch of coriander, some compost for my plants, basil seedlings and a pot of desi mint plant. I had also bought some goats cheese and a bit of paneer.

The loot from the Farmers Market

Now I knew what I would do with most of these things already.
With the Kulfa I made a Kulfa- Aloo Sabzi ( I love this combo with parathas!);  I roasted the corn and seasoned it with lime juice and chaat masala; I use fresh chopped coriander on all my dals and sabzis; Goat cheese was used in wraps with a red cabbage and onion tomato stir fry filling; We had the carrots with some homemade black chickpeas hummus; I made a lovely Matar Paneer after ages with the buffalo milk paneer I had got my hands on; I prepared a purple cabbage thoran on one Sunday; Also used the cabbage in an asian style stir fried rice (pictured below), The organic eggs you can see in the first picture above, all went into a loaded egg bhurji and the beans were again made with some potatoes into a stir fry! PHEW!!

(Note: If you want any of these recipes, tell us in the comments soon and we’ll share the recipe in a post)
But before I got to doing all this, I had to figure out something to do with the beautiful carrot leaves before they wilted away! I had never tried them before and had never bought carrots that still had tops.

What inspired  the Carrot Top Pesto

Kanika’s three herb pesto came to mind where she mentioned that you can make pesto with any herb and nuts.
And that was it! I knew what I was doing with the carrot tops. I decided on making the pesto but the carrot leaves were not enough. After some inspiration from a recipe I found online here, I reached out for the desi mint leaves and the coriander leaves. I had some button mushrooms already in the fridge before I spoiled myself silly in the farmers market!

So now, my mission was to make a Mushroom Linguine in Carrot top Pesto topped with some crumbly goat cheese!

Ingredients
For the Pesto
Carrot top leaves, 1/2 cup 
Mint leaves, 1/4 cup 
Coriander leaves and stems – chopped, 1/4 cup 
mixed nuts ( I used almonds and walnuts), 1/4 cup
A clove of garlic
Juice of 1 lime
Salt to taste
Olive oil, 3-4 tablespoons or more

For the Mushroom Linguine
A pot of water
Whole wheat Linguine for 2 people (Learn how to measure Spaghetti here)
Salt to taste
Olive oil
Onion sliced, 1 big 
Button mushrooms sliced, 1 cup
A fat clove of garlic –  finely chopped
Dried Oregano, 1/4 teaspoon 
Dried Basil, 1/2 teaspoon 
Red chilli powder (optional), 1/2 teaspoon 
Freshly ground pepper according to taste
Goat cheese for topping (optional)
Cherry tomatoes (optional)

Method

Cooking the pasta

Place a large pot of water to boil. Add approximately 2-3 teaspoons of salt to season the water. Till the water comes to a boil, we’ll work on the pesto. Once the water boils, add the linguine and cook according to packet instructions. I boiled the linguine for 10 minutes. Once the pasta cooks for the mentioned time, reserve a cup of pasta water and drain the rest.

For the Carrot Top Pesto

Wash and pick the leaves from the carrot tops and mint. For the coriander leaves, you can use the sticks as well. Now wash and clean the coriander sticks as well.
You can change the proportions of herbs in the pesto according to your preference. After washing the herbs, drain them off using a sieve. After they drain, roughly chop all these herbs.

In a small pan, put all the nuts of your choice and lightly toast them on low heat till you can see they develop dark spots. Once done, remove from heat and let them cool for a few minutes. I used walnuts and almonds for this.
Transfer these herbs into a small processor jar or mixie, throw in roughly chopped garlic, squeeze in a lime, add salt and the toasted nuts. Pulse these together to get a coarse mix. Next add in a bit of olive oil and process more. You will need to scrape the sides of the jar to process these evenly. Add more Olive oil and process till you get a good paste and the desired consistency.  An ideal consistency would be when the herbs have been blended together and the nuts would have been ground to a paste.

Now to the mushroom linguine

Slice 1 large onion and wash and slice the mushroom. Smash a clove of garlic with a chef’s knife and peel it. Chop the garlic finely.
In a pan or a wok, add olive oil or butter. When the oil is warm, add the sliced onions and chopped garlic. Add salt, red chilli powder, dried oregano, pepper and dried basil. Cook for a few minutes on medium high heat till you see the onions start becoming transparent.
Now add the sliced mushrooms and sauté them for about 10 minutes. Once the mushrooms are cooked, add a bit of the pasta water followed by the linguine.  I used about half a cup of the reserved pasta water.

Coat the linguine in the liquid and stir to distribute the mushrooms and onions evenly.
Cook till the liquid reduces on the sides. Take off the heat and add a few tablespoons of pesto and mix it in to coat the linguine.

You may add more pesto according to your preference.

Serve this Mushroom Linguine in Carrot top pesto in bowls and top with goats cheese and/or cherry tomatoes!

Mushroom Linguine in Carrot Top Pesto

2018-06-29 01:40:37

A simple mushroom linguine in a pesto made of carrot top leaves and

For the Pesto

1. Carrot top leaves, 1/2 cup
2. Mint leaves, 1/4 cup
3. Coriander leaves and stems - chopped, 1/4 cup
4. mixed nuts ( I used almonds and walnuts), 1/4 cup
5. A clove of garlic
6. Juice of 1 lime
7. Salt to taste
8. Olive oil, 3-4 tablespoons or more

For the Mushroom Linguine

1. A pot of water
2. Whole wheat Linguine for 2 people (Learn how to measure Spaghetti here)
3. Salt to taste
4. Olive oil
5. Onion sliced, 1 big
6. Button mushrooms sliced, 1 cup
7. A fat clove of garlic -  finely chopped
8. Dried Oregano, 1/4 teaspoon
9. Dried Basil, 1/2 teaspoon
10. Red chilli powder (optional), 1/2 teaspoon
11. Freshly ground pepper according to taste
12. Goat cheese for topping (optional)
13. Cherry tomatoes (optional)

Add ingredients to shopping list

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Cook Pasta according to package instructions

1. Place a large pot of water to boil. Add approximately 2-3 teaspoons of salt to season the water. Once the water boils, add the linguine and cook according to packet instructions. Once the pasta cooks for the mentioned time, reserve a cup of pasta water and drain the rest.

For the pesto

1. Wash and pick the leaves from the carrot tops and mint. For the coriander leaves, you can use the sticks as well. Wash and clean the coriander sticks as well. After washing the herbs, drain them off using a sieve. After they drain, roughly chop all these herbs.
2. In a small pan, put all the nuts of your choice and lightly toast them on low heat till you can see they develop dark spots. Once done, remove from heat and let them cool for a few minutes.
3. Transfer these herbs into a small processor jar or mixie, throw in roughly chopped garlic, squeeze in a lime, add salt and the toasted nuts. Pulse these together to get a coarse mix.
4. Next add in a bit of olive oil and process more. You will need to scrape the sides of the jar to process these evenly. Add more Olive oil and process till you get a good paste and the desired consistency.  An ideal consistency would be when the herbs have been blended together and the nuts would have been ground to a paste.

Preparing the mushroom linguine

1. Slice 1 large onion and wash and slice the mushroom. Smash a clove of garlic with a chef's knife and peel it. Chop the garlic finely.
2. In a pan or a wok, add olive oil or butter. Once warm, add the sliced onions and chopped garlic. Add salt, red chilli powder, dried oregano, pepper and dried basil. Cook for a few minutes on medium high heat till you see the onions start becoming transparent.
3. Now add the sliced mushrooms and sauté them for about 10 minutes. Once the mushrooms are cooked, add a bit of the pasta water followed by the linguine. I used about half a cup of the reserved pasta water.
4. Coat the linguine in the liquid and stir to distribute the mushrooms and onions evenly.
5. Cook till the liquid reduces on the sides. Take off the heat and add a few tablespoons of pesto and mix it in to coat the linguine. Add more pesto according to your preference.
6. Serve this Mushroom Linguine in Carrot top pesto in bowls and top with goats cheese and/or cherry tomatoes.

Notes

1. You can change the proportions of herbs in the pesto according to your preference.

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By Sakshi Kapoor

Adapted from Tasting Page

Adapted from Tasting Page

Kitchenpostcards https://www.kitchenpostcards.com/

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