⚡️Green pesto orzo⚡️
This is one of my absolute faveeeee baby recipes. It’s super fresh, and easy to make, you can also freeze it in little pots and bring out the night before and leave in the fridge!
It packs a bunch of nutrients, especially if not eating much meat or fish, as the nuts give a hit of protein, iron and zinc - which are really important nutrients for growing babies!
YOU NEED
Pesto
(Serves 4 adults or a mix of adults and babies)
30g basil with leaves and stems
2 tablespoons of nutritional yeast
30g cashews
20g almonds
Half a lemon, juiced
60ml olive oil (adjusted depending on texture)
2 cloves of garlic, peeled
Ground black pepper
Orzo
80g orzo per adult, cooked to packet instructions
Salad
1/2 cucumber, finely diced
Handful cherry tomatoes, finely diced
A few mint leaves very finely chopped
A few parsley leaves very finely chopped
A squeeze of fresh lemon juice
Drizzle of oil
Optional: some yoghurt* to hold the salad for little babas
Grinding of black pepper
A few pine nuts (for adults and older children only)
TO MAKE
Whizz all pesto ingredients in a blender apart from the olive oil
Drizzle in the oil a little at a time, then whizz, then drizzle, repeat, until you have a nice drizzly consistency
When the orzo is cooked and drained, return to the hot pan, add the pesto and warm through a little in the pan on a low-med heat to develop the flavours, especially the garlic
To make the salad, mix all the ingredients in a bowl. Ensure the salad is diced appropriately for your baby! Very finely chopped for those less than 1 year and stir through some whole yoghurt so it sticks to a weaning spoon
Serve the fresh orzo with the diced salad (and a sprinkling of pine nuts for the adults)
Pre-load onto a weaning spoon for baby led weaning or spoon feeding
Allergens:
This recipe contains cashews (tree nuts), almonds (tree nuts), orzo pasta (wheat) and has optional yoghurt (milk)
*To make dairy-free / vegan: use dairy-free / plant-based yoghurt alternative