stinging nettle pesto

You see them growing on almost every corner of the street, yes indeed, stinging nettle. Whenever I pass them with my son, I always say “look out, be careful, those are the stinging plants!”… I think all of us consider this plant to be weeds… I did too… what I never told my son yet is that these plants are actually very high in nutritional value and you can make great food with them!

And now that I was in the mood to explore the neighbourhood for food, I decided to go to the little forest behind my house and pick some stinging nettle. Don’t forget to put on some gloves! Only pick the tops and if possible the younger lighter green ones, they taste the best.

Did you know that if you if you quickly cook them in boiling water they no longer sting? Great, because you do not want to be on fire after eating a nice pasta pesto!

If you pick and clean them, be aware that they are loved by caterpillars, so you might need to rescue a few of them.

Are you also in the mood to turn some weeds into great food?