Okay, how many of you have cooked for years and years with beets and never did anything with the greens? Hello! That was me until earlier this summer. I often make my roasted beet hummus in the summertime and one day I just decided that I didn’t want to be wasting so much by just composting the greens, so I decided to experiment and make some pesto. And am I ever happy that I did! I absolutely LOVE cooking and since I have started cooking with essential oils, I truly have begun experimenting a lot more in my kitchen.

When you cook with essential oils, you can get such amazing flavour with just a few drops of essential oil. There are so many dōTERRA oils that can be used for this. Many people are surprised to learn that you can cook with essential oils.

When it comes to using essential oils in your cooking, not all essential oils are created equal. Only use certified pure therapeutic grade dōTERRA essential oils that are labeled for internal use for ingestion.

Lemon essential oil is cold pressed from the rind of the fruit. You can replace the zest of one lemon with about 10-15 drops of essential oil.

Beet greens pesto with lemon and basil essential oil

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups beet greens (or greens from one bunch of beets)
• 1 tbsp fresh cilantro (one small handful)
• 3 tbsp toasted pine nuts
• 3 tbsp freshly grated parmesan
• 1 tbsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• 2 drops Lemon essential oil
• 2 drops Basil essential oil

Directions:

• Wash and chop beet greens and cilantro.
• Add all ingredients to food processor and blend.
• Store in a mason jar for 3-4 days.

Serve on homemade pizza. Spread on fresh bread and add your own fresh toppings. I love thinly sliced radishes, arugula and feta cheese layered over the pesto on fresh bread. This is a great appetizer. Or simply use as a tasty dip.

Did you try this recipe? Let me know in the comments below.