Ingredients

• Ingredients Scale 1x2x3x 3 large carrots 3 small zucchini pepitas, for serving mineral salt & cracked pepper to taste almond parmesan, for serving Cilantro Pepita Pesto (serves 4) 1 large bunch cilantro (3 cups loosely packed), ends removed, leaves and small stems ok 1/3 cup pepitas (shelled pumpkin seeds), toasted or raw 2 tablespoons hemp hearts, optional 2 cloves garlic 1 small jalapeno, seed removed (leave a few seeds for heat if you like) 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil juice of 1 large lemon 1/2 teaspoon himilayan salt 1/2 teaspoon garam masala, optional

Preparation

• Instructions Pesto: Place pepitas in your food processor and pulse a few times until seeds are broken down fairly well. Add remaining ingredients and blend until well combined and fairly smooth, stopping to scrape down the sides as needed. Add water, 1 tablespoon at a time, to thin if needed (no need to add more oil unless you want). Taste for flavor and season to taste. Set aside. Ribbons: Peel the outer layer of your carrots and discard. Using the peeler, ribbon the carrots. Wash your zucchini, cut the ends off and using a mandolin, or tool of choice, ribbon the zucchini. You can just as well julienne your carrots and zucchini with a julienne tool or by hand if you would rather have thinner strands. Combine: In a medium size bowl, place carrots and zucchini, add a few spoonfuls of pesto and mix to combine. You will have pesto leftover unless you really love the stuff and use it all! Serve: Plate your ribbons, top with a sprinkle of pepitas and a nice dusting of almond parmesan. For a little extra color you could add some red pepper flakes to the top. Serves 2 Store leftover pesto in an airtight container in the fridge for up to a week. Use the pesto for pasta, as a dip for vegetables, as a spread for sandwiches, thin it out with water or lemon juice and make a dressing for salads, etc. Lots of ways to use pesto. NOTES: Use almonds in place of pepitas if needed. I used raw pepitas instead of toasting them.For the garam marsla, if pairing this with regular pasta I would leave it out. It pairs well with the freshness of the carrot & zucchini ribbons. Also, I found that it tasted fine with almond parmesan. But like I said earlier, I can eat some really unusual combinations. If you feel like experimenting, try it out…if in doubt, skip it.