Sweet pea pesto with preserved nasturtium

A kid friendly, colourful and nourishing idea for your hors d'oeuvre repertoire.

Everywhere during Christmas, everybody seems to go nuts when it comes to food. But on my Christmas table, I wish to nourish the body fuel with energy for long talks, crying laughers and kid's games.

Here is one colourful and nourishing idea for your hors d'oeuvre repertoire.

I usually like to make more than one dish using the same ingredient, so if I already had my green peas defrosted for my Sweet Pea Potato Mash it was a perfect moment to make another dish with them. This pesto is literally easy-peasy to make.

You just have to throw your defrosted peas in the blender, add some good quality extra virgin oil, a small garlic clove, salt, pepper, lemon juice, and lemon zest. Mix it until it gets extra buttery.

Toppings: nasturtium seeds vs Capers

The twist here is, obviously, the toppings. I had so much joy doing this; last summer I preserved a super small jar of nasturtium seeds after a good friend of mine mentioned I could do that (thank you, M.)

This was the first time I opened it and oh wow, what a treasure! They are called peasant's capers and I find their taste and crunch somehow similar, but the nasturtium are much more exquisite than the capers taste-wise. So I definitely recommend trying these out. If you're growing your own nasturtium and are interested in the recipe, let me know and I'll tell you my way of preserving them.

Otherwise, for this recipe, you can easily use capers. The sweetness of the peas just needs something salty and sour and punchy. So go on and use them. Additionally, I made some quickly marinated beetroot chunks, also as a part of my Warm winter salad with coconut and horseradish dressing. I still had 1 cooked beetroot so I just cut it, added vinaigrette, honey, salt and crushed caraway seed (love this pairing for beets) and let it stay until I finished the rest of the recipe.

I topped my pea pesto, added a drizzle of EVOO, the nasturtium/capers and a good amount of freshly ground black pepper. Also, the pesto itself is super kid-friendly, so yay.

Sweet pea pesto with preserved nasturtium

Vegan, Plant-based, Gluten-free

Makes: 1 full bowl

Time: 15 minutes

Ingredients

Sweet pea pesto

• 200 g defrosted and cooked peas

• 1 smal garlic clove

• 1 tbsp nasturtium preserved seeds

• 1/3 cup EVOO

• Juice from 1/4 lemon

• big pinch sea salt

Marinated beets with Caraway

• 1 big cooked beetroot

• 3 tbsp apple cider vinegar

• 2 tbsp agave nectar/honey

• pinch of salt

• 1 tsp crushed caraway seeds

Garnish

• chopped dill

• preserved nasturtium or capers

• *optional fresh nasturtium leaves,*optional, chopped spring onion

• drizzle of EVOO

Instructions

1. Start by chopping your cooked beetroot in big pieces and place them in a bowl.

2. In a small bowl, mix apple cider vinegar, sweetener of your choice, salt, and caraway seeds. Add the dressing over the chopped beetroot and let it sit.

3. To make the pesto, throw all the pesto ingredients in the blender and blend until smooth and buttery. Add a bit of water if the consistency is too thick. Taste and adjust with salad and lemon juice.

4. Place the pesto in a bowl and level with a spoon.

5. Add the marinated beets on top. Add a big splash of EVOO, crushed black pepper, dill and sprinkle with the nasturtium seeds/capers. Add nasturtium leaves if you have them.

6. Serve!