Recipes
Uk

Wild Herb Pesto Pasta

Fresh pasta with homemade pesto using foraged wild garlic and garden herbs.

Ingredients

  • 1 large handful wild garlic leaves
  • 1 handful fresh parsley
  • 1 handful fresh basil
  • 50g nuts (pine nuts, walnuts, or almonds)
  • 50g parmesan
  • 80-120ml olive oil
  • Zest of 1 lemon
  • Juice of ½ lemon
  • Salt & black pepper
  • 300g pasta

Method

  1. 1

    Boil pasta in salted water. Reserve ½ cup pasta water before draining

  2. 2

    Add wild garlic, herbs, nuts, parmesan, lemon zest to food processor. Pulse

  3. 3

    Drizzle in olive oil until desired consistency. Season

  4. 4

    Toss hot pasta with pesto. Add splash of pasta water to loosen

  5. 5

    Stir in optional toppings. Finish with extra herbs or lemon zest

Swaps & variations

  • Add chilli flakes for heat
  • Add spinach for extra volume
  • Add rocket for pepperiness
  • Add avocado for creamy pesto
  • Add anchovy or miso paste for umami depth

Storing & freezing

Pesto keeps 1 week refrigerated topped with oil. Freeze in ice-cube trays for 3 months.

Grow it yourself

  • Wild Garlic: Forage Feb-April. Harvest responsibly, taking few leaves per plant
  • Parsley: Prefers partial shade and moist soil
  • Basil: Needs warmth—plant only after frost or keep indoors
  • Wild garlic: naturally repels many pests
  • Basil: deters aphids, whitefly, and mosquitos
  • Parsley: attracts beneficial hover flies
  • Wild Garlic: Pick leaves before plant flowers for best flavour
  • Parsley: Harvest from outside of plant
  • Basil: Take leaves from top to encourage branching

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