Let’s Make Bärlauch Pesto (Wild Garlic Pesto)
Hi BCT members,
Have you caught sight of any Bärlauch yet?
Also known as bear leek (or bear’s garlic, broad-leaved garlic, buckrams, ramsons, wood garlic, wild garlic), their green leaves typically appear around early spring. This bulbous and perennial plant is a relative of chives and has a strong flavour similar to garlic or onion.
Consequently, you can use the leaves in your cooking. Treat them like leeks, green garlic or spring onions and utilise them as a marinade, condiment, garnish, or even pesto.
You can easily forage them in the forests in and around Basel when in season.* Alternatively, you can source them in packages from the supermarket aisles.
Below is a recipe to make Bärlauch pesto that you can serve with pasta or potatoes.
Ingredients:
- 100g of Bärlauch.
- 50g of pine nuts.
- 100ml of olive oil (more if needed).
- Juice of half a lemon.
- Salt and pepper to taste.
- Some finely grated parmesan cheese or nutritional yeast.
Instructions:
- Wash the Bärlauch/wild garlic and then spin them dry. Following this, cut the leaves into strips. Set aside.
- Roast the pine nuts in a pan (without any fat) until they turn brown, and then chop them using a food processor.
- Then, add the remaining ingredients into your blender and mix them into a smooth substance.
- Check the paste and add more olive oil if you find it too thick.
- Taste and add salt or pepper to your liking.
- Serve with potatoes or pasta.
*Note: If you are new to foraging, double-check that the leaves are a pungent smell of garlic. Additionally, make sure you know the differences between them and the poisonous” “Lily of the Vall”y“.
