Lately, I’ve been really interested (both for our budget and out of creative curiosity) in figuring out ways to maximize the use of all our produce items. For example, when I buy beets, in addition to using the beetroot, I’ll also sauté up the greens. The other day I got some carrots in my CSA box, and it made me wonder – is there anything you can do with those carrot tops? Of course, carrot top pesto was one of the first things that came to mind.
Turns out, there is a lot of debate in the online world about whether carrot tops are poisonous or not. Before I get into my opinions, let’s just be clear that this post does not constitute medical advice. If you are nervous about eating carrot tops, ask your doctor!
So here’s the deal. A 2009 New York Times article prompted some of this online debate about toxicity, stating:
“A carrot top, apparently, is not a laughing matter. They contain alkaloids, Ms. Sumner explained, a group of organic compounds that includes caffeine, cocaine, and strychnine. These are substances that even culinary thrill-seekers might not want in their salad. “Effects range from slightly elevated blood pressure, and slightly elevated alertness and heartbeat, all the way to death,” Ms. Sumner said.”
But a separate NY Times blog featuring food science writer Harold McGee states that he’s found “no evidence that carrot tops are unsafe to eat.”
Here’s my take on it:
- Yes, carrot tops contain alkaloids and nitrates, but so do a host of other vegetables we eat, like spinach or cilantro
- Bitter does not necessarily mean toxic; and some of us have genetic traits that cause us to perceive a higher level of bitterness than others.
- You’d have to eat (or juice) a large amount of most greens to experience side effects
While there are other plants out there that resemble carrot tops which are toxic (like poison hemlock) – I can’t find any scientific evidence that carrot tops are toxic when eaten in a normal amount. In fact, the only scientific article I found in pubmed that specifically looked at carrot tops (along with radish tops) found that men fed 75 grams per day for a month had no adverse effects.
In other words, as long as you aren’t eating them by the bushel – or you aren’t personally sensitive to the greens (and sensitives can happen with any food, of course) – then you should be able to eat them. I’d recommend organic carrot greens when possible, though, since they may be high in pesticide residues.
And I’m still kickin’ after whipping up this carrot top pesto recipe, so I’m going to take that as a good sign. I plan to experiment with them soon in some other recipes too, like these Roasted Carrot & Black Bean Tacos with Cilantro & Carrot Green Chimichurri.
But this pesto was delicious and definitely a recipe I’ll make again soon. The taste is kind of a mixture of fresh, earthy parsley flavor, peppery arugula flavor, and some subtle carrot notes.
[Tweet “Use up every part of those carrots by making this tasty carrot top pesto!”]
There are tons of ways you can use this carrot top pesto, just like you’d use other forms of pesto. Here are just a few ideas to get you thinking about how to use pesto:
- Mix with pasta and veggies for a nice spring and summertime dish
- Use as a spread on a sandwich instead of mayo
- Make into pesto pizza (think topping naan with pesto, grilled chicken, tomatoes, and mozz, or topping your favorite pizza crust with portabello mushrooms, red peppers, and pesto)
- Toss with roasted or grilled veggies
- Drizzle over avocado toast
- Mixe with roasted potatoes (my favorite – just look at those potatoes below!)
- Top baked or grilled chicken
- Spread on bruschetta
- Add to your favorite grilled cheese
- Toss with spaghetti squash and grilled shrimp
- Make a pesto mac & cheese
- Mix into chicken salad sandwiches
- Top a turkey burger with pesto, tomatoes, and mozzarella
- Use as a dip for baked french fries
- Make cheesy pesto pull-apart bread for a party
Give it a whirl and let me know what you think!
Carrot Top Pesto
Ingredients
Ingredients
- 1 bunch carrot tops
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 lemon, zest and juice (zest first - it's easier than trying to zest after squeezing it!)
- 1/3 cup Parmesan cheese
- 1/3 to 1/2 cup olive oil
- (optional) salt to taste
Instructions
Directions:
- Add all ingredients to a food processor, starting with the lesser amount of olive oil. Pulse a few times until well combined. Add additional olive oil as needed to reach desired pesto texture.
- Taste pesto - if desired, add salt. I usually season the foods I'm adding it to first (like baked chicken or potatoes) but feel free to add a little salt to the pesto if needed.
- Serve pesto over pasta, baked chicken, potatoes, or whatever your heart desires!
Share with me: Have you ever made carrot top pesto, or cooked with carrot tops in another way? What are your favorite things to make with them? What’s one of your favorite ways to use pesto?
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Oh my gosh, the recipe was delish! Thank you for sharing!!
Yay, so glad you enjoyed it! 🙂 Thanks for taking the time to share that you liked it.
I was looking for a way to use my carrot tops I just bought and was so disappointed when most of the pesto recipes required nuts/another trip back to the store for me. I loved that this recipe used things I already had on hand and I was honestly shocked at how good it still tastes!
Awesome! I’m so glad you liked it Natalie. 🙂
I knew there must be something better to do with carrot tops than relegate them to the compost bin. So glad I found this recipe! The pesto I made last night may be the best I’ve ever tasted. I spread it over the carrots it came with, which I had oven roasted to sweet perfection. I’ve bookmarked this page so I can come back and try some of the other recipes. Thank you!
Aw, this comment makes me so happy! I’m so glad you enjoyed the pesto. 🙂
Hi! Just found this nugget. Got a beautiful bunch of organic purple carrots today and they have such lovely fronds. I had to find a way to use them. This looks like a great application. I hope to be able to store in a good sealing jar with a layer of olive oil on top so I can make it last a while. What do you think?
Hi there – so glad you were able to find this recipe! In full honesty, food storage is not my forte – but I’d worry a little bit about greens/lemon juice/Parmesan being in the fridge for more than a week (without some kind of high heat canning processing) from a food safety perspective. If it were me, I’d try to use it up within a week 🙂
We freeze it in ice cube trays.
So smart! I need to do that 🙂
I’ve made this three times now and I love it!! I’ve been making a bigger batch and freezing it in smaller amounts to use as needed.
That makes me so happy – I’m glad to hear you enjoy it! It’s definitely a favorite around our house too 🙂
Also want to add it was nice to find a carrot top pesto recipe that didn’t incorporate basil or other herb. If I wanted to make basil pesto I would have!
Do you use the entire carrot top or just the leaves?
I’m so sorry for missing this comment earlier Jennifer! I just toss the entire upper portion of the carrot tops in there rather than picking off the leaves. Hope that helps!
I was pleasantly surprised by how good this pesto turned out! I made slight adjustments to the ingredients according to my taste, and it was amazingly tasty. The lemon adds just the right amount of tang!
I’m so glad you enjoyed it Dana! 🙂 Thanks for taking the time to try it and leave a comment.
Really excited to try this, but what does 1 bunch of carrot tops equate to? A cup/ 2 cups? Thanks
That is a great question! I usually use the amount that comes with a one-pound bunch of carrots, which is about 1 1/2 cups. That said, this recipe if flexible, and you can adjust it to your desired taste or based on what you have on hand. 🙂
Thanks Chrissy
I have a garden so this gives me a guideline. I’m eager to try it and share it.
Yelana
Awesome! Let me know if you enjoyed it 🙂
Recently got some beautiful organic carrots with lovely greens and seemed like such a waste to just toss them… this recipe is a winner! looking forward to using the pesto this week…I think on seabass or halibut fillets in the oven. Thanks for sharing.
Oooh, I love the idea of using it over some seabass or halibut – that sounds delicious!
Great recipe! made the pesto this weekend and tonight tossed it with some rigatoni, then topped with mozzarella, feta and parm and baked at 400 degrees for about 25 minutes.
Yum! That sounds amazing. So glad you enjoyed it.
Delicious! Thank you for the yummy recipe and ideas of ways to use it. I took idea #7 and decided to try it on a chicken sandwich with tomato and fresh mozzarella. Everybody loved it! It didn’t all get used up so I’m looking forward to trying some of the other ideas.
So glad you enjoyed it! That chicken sandwich sounds delicious 🙂
OHHHHHH SOOOOOO GOOD! I always used the carrot top greens to make vegetable stock stock but this recipe for pesto is delicious! I can’t wait to make it again
Thank you so much
I’m so glad you enjoyed it! It’s a favorite of mine (especially over some roasted potatoes).
Just made this delicious pesto. Wow it’s the nicest pesto I’ve tried & uses those amazing carrot tops – so much flavour! Can’t wait to put it onto lamb chops for dinner tonight!
I’m so glad you enjoyed it! It’s definitely a favorite around our house when we’ve got extra carrot tops on hand.
Delicious! It is my first year gardening carrots and I was so excited to find this pesto recipe. I used 1/4 cup olive oil and also threw in a couple of leftover basil leaves I had. Very tasty on sourdough bread with some sliced cucumber. Thank you! 🙂
Oooh I love the idea of it spread on sourdough with sliced cucumbers – thank you for sharing that! 🙂
Delicious. I wasn’t expecting to like this pesto this much. I’m surprised that something that tastes this good and makes use of something that normally goes to waste is not more widely known. Great job!!
Thanks for the comment Naomi – glad you enjoyed it! 🙂
I used your recipe and did also add 1/3 cup of walnuts, we all loved it! Thank you for the ideas to use my CSA carrot tops!
Glad you enjoyed it Shelly! Thanks for sharing 🙂
Has anyone tried canning this recipe or just freeze the excess?
There are certain protocols for canning as far as pH – I am not an expert in this, but I believe pesto would not have enough acidity to safely can in a water bath at home. (But it freezes wonderfully).
Made today, picked carrots at sunrise, made pesto at 6:30 AM, served pesto at 5 PM on tortellini Added some pine nuts and double garlic. Using juice from one lemon was a wee bit tart, but very tasty otherwise. Looking forward to making again!
Awesome! Sounds like you made some great changes to fit your preferences, glad you enjoyed it 🙂
Garlic scapes are in season right now. I used those instead of garlic cloves. YUMM to the UMMMMMM!!! Great recipe friend. Thank you…
Wonderful, so glad you enjoyed it with the garlic scapes!