Fennel Pesto – a Twist on Your Favorite Pasta Sauce

I’ve been loving our local Farmer’s Markets lately. Our growing season here in Northern Minnesota is short, so it’s especially exciting when we start to see fresh veggies at the market. I feel the need to use and preserve as many of them as possible while I can. My newest love is this Fennel Pesto.

I’ve eaten my fair share of fennel bulb – I usually roast it until caramelized and toss it on a salad. But I’ve never utilized the lovely green fronds before. The fronds on the fennel I’ve gotten at the farmer’s market lately have been so lush that I couldn’t bear to toss them out, so I decided to put them in a pesto. And I’m so glad I did.

If you’ve made basil pesto before, the method will be familiar. This is made the same way, but with fennel fronds instead of basil leaves. It has a different flavor than a basil pesto: it’s a fresh, green, slightly licorice-y flavor. It’s excellent on pasta, roasted veggies, pork (think porketta-type flavors), and even fish if you leave out the cheese.

A note on equipment…

You’ll ideally make this in a food processor to get a paste-like texture (I have this one and love it, if you’re in the market for one). But if you don’t have one you can still make it. A good blender will do the trick, or just chop up the fennel fronds, garlic, and nuts as finely as you can, then mix with the salt, olive oil and cheese (if using). It will be a little chunkier this way, but still delicious.

So if you’re a fan of basil pesto and are lucky enough to find fennel bulb with plenty of fronds, give this fennel pesto a try. Let me know what you think of it, and how you use it! Comment below or on social media (I’m on Facebook at Instagram) – I’d love to hear from you!

Print Recipe

Fennel Pesto

A riff on a traditional pesto, using fennel fronds instead of basil leaves. Recipe adapted from the New York Times, March 2013.

Prep Time20 minutes mins

Course: Condiment

Cuisine: Italian

Keyword: Fennel Frond Pesto, Fennel Pesto, Pesto

Servings: 12 Tablespoons

Equipment

• Food Processor

Ingredients

• 2 c fennel fronds, roughly chopped
• 4 cloves garlic, whole
• 1/4 c pine nuts, almonds, or walnuts
• 3/4 tsp coarse sea salt or kosher salt
• 1/2 c grated Parmesan cheese, optional
• 1/2 c olive oil

Instructions

• In the bowl of a food processor, combine fennel fronds, garlic cloves, nuts, salt, and cheese (if using).
• Pulse until ingredients are chopped up and combined.
• Gradually add oil, processing until well-combined and paste-like.
• Serve right away, or refrigerate for up to a couple of weeks. Pesto can also be frozen for a month or so.

Notes

Don’t have a food processor? Mince the fennel fronds, garlic, and nuts with a knife and mix with the salt, olive oil, and cheese (if using) until well-combined. The pesto will be chunkier, but still incredibly delicious.