Spicy Green Pesto
This chile pepper gets its name from its origin. In Spanish, serrano is an adjective meaning “from the mountains” which is where it originated-in the mountains of Hildalgo, Mexico. The serrano is normally about twice as hot as Jalapeno (about 10,000 to 15,000 Scoville units).It is the second most popular chile pepper in Mexico. This chile is used mostly for salsas but can also be used in soups, sauces, chili or stews.Try these as a hotter substitute for Jalapeno.
Serves: 1¼ cups
INGREDIENTS
3 c fresh basil leaves (loosely packed, about one 4-oz container with stems removed)
4 c baby kale (loosely packed, about ½ one large bag)*
3 cloves garlic
2 jalapenos or serrano peppers (one seeded and one left seeds in)**
juice of ½ lemon (meyer lemon preferred)
½ tsp salt
⅓ c raw almonds
⅓ c extra virgin olive oil
INSTRUCTIONS
BLEND: Using the blade attachment of your food processor, process the baby kale, almonds, garlic cloves, and lemon juice on high for 10 seconds. Now that there’s enough room, put the basil, salt and peppers in and process on high for 5-10 seconds. Stop and scrape down the sides with a spatula. Repeat until well processed (about 4-6 more times). Then place the processor on low and slowly stream in the olive oil through the top feed tube until well blended (about 5-10 seconds).
REFRIGERATE: Store in a tightly sealed jar in the fridge.
NOTES
*You can swap baby kale for another green as preferred like baby spinach or peppery arugula, just be sure to use a hearty leafy green and stay away from using any of the more watery greens (like romaine lettuce, etc)
**If you don’t like things too spicy you can either use only half of one of the peppers with its seeds, omit the seeds in both peppers, or omit the peppers altogether.
From freeyourfork.com