Fresh Spinach Basil Pesto (a low calorie, veggie packed, low carb, high protein, vegetarian, & gluten free flavor packed condiment :)

This recipe is my twist on traditional pesto.  Homemade pesto tastes so much better than jarred & it is really, really easy to make!!  My recipe is really not all too different but I did swap out some of the basil for spinach and lowered the fat too.  If you are looking for a super easy, fast, & fresh condiment that is delicious with so many different things: eggs, steak, pork chops, chicken, fish, pasta, or veggies just to name a few.  Yoh can even use this to top off some crackers or chips with a little cheese (the Quest or Special K brand chips/crackers are super yummy with this along with sharp cheddar!!)  it looks really pretty and bright green plus it is healthy too 🙂

Ingredients:

*1/4 cup packed raw spinach

*1/4 cup packed basil

*1/8 cup parmesan cheese

*1/8 cup pine nuts

*1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil

*3 tablespoons chicken or vegetable stock (You may need an additional tablespoon.  You can use fat free stock instead if you want)

*1 teaspoon (or more!) chopped garlic

*salt & pepper (to taste)

Add spinach, basil, parmesan, garlic, pine nuts, and 1 tablepoon of chicken stock into a blender or food processor.  Start blender on low speed.   Chop the ingredients a little then while blender is on add in the olive oil and additional 2 tablespoons of stock.  You may need to add an additional tablespoon of stock to get it to the texture you want.  It will add a few (literally 5-7) extra calories to the counts listed at the end.

Continue to chop/blend until it is the texture you prefer.  You will need to pause and scrape down sides several times while blending.  If you know me from my other blog posts then you know I generally prefer a more chunky texture for foods (I like to chew lol!!) versus a smooth texture so I am making a chunky pesto as shown below 😉

Add salt and pepper to taste once it is blended to your liking.  I added 10 grinds of salt and 7 of pepper if you want an idea of what I used.  This stores well for a couple days max in a sealed container in the fridge.

i am adding mine to some organic black bean pasta (one of my top pasta picks-read my blog post on my pasta picks here: http://www.sarahbrockner.com/blog/2014/05/21/my-pasta-picks-because-sometimes-zucchini-noodles-just-wont-cut-it-lol/

Makes 2 servings

Per serving:

148 calories

14 grams fat

2 grams carbs

1 gram fiber

4 grams protein