Milk Street Community

Pumpkin Seed Pesto with Cilantro and Chipotle

Name: Pumpkin Seed Pesto with Cilantro and Chipotle
Cook time: 10 min
Total time: 10 min
Yield: 1 cup
Ingredients: 1/2 cup pumpkin seeds; 2 cups lightly packed fresh cilantro; 1 ounce cotija cheese, crumbled (¼ cup); 1 chipotle chili in adobo sauce; 1 teaspoon grated lime zest, plus 2 tablespoons lime juice; 1 medium garlic clove, smashed and peeled; Kosher salt and ground black pepper; 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil

Adapted by Rose Hattabaugh

1 cup

10 minutes

Free

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This spicy, smoky, earthy Mexican-inspired pesto comes from Milk Street Facebook Community member Carol McClendon of Houston. Toss it with a pound of cooked pasta, along with a little reserved pasta cooking water to help the pesto coat the noodles, but it’s also delicious in a quesadilla. Or try it as a finishing touch on roasted winter squash or spooned onto grilled chicken or pork chops.

1

cup

Tip

Don’t overprocess the pesto or the pumpkin seeds will absorb all of the oil and the mixture takes on the consistency of a nut butter. To avoid overblending, it’s best to add the oil all at once and pulse to combine rather than stream it in while the machine is running.

10 minutes

1/2 cup pumpkin seeds

2 cups lightly packed fresh cilantro

1 ounce cotija cheese, crumbled (¼ cup)

1 chipotle chili in adobo sauce

1 teaspoon grated lime zest, plus 2 tablespoons lime juice

1 medium garlic clove, smashed and peeled

Kosher salt and ground black pepper

1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil

Ingredients

½

cup pumpkin seeds
2

cups lightly packed fresh cilantro
1

ounce cotija cheese, crumbled (¼ cup)
1

chipotle chili in adobo sauce
1

teaspoon grated lime zest, plus 2 tablespoons lime juice
1

medium garlic clove, smashed and peeled
Kosher salt and ground black pepper
¼

cup extra-virgin olive oil

Directions

01

In a food processor, combine the pumpkin seeds, cilantro, cotija, chipotle chili, lime zest and juice, garlic and ¼ teaspoon pepper. Pulse until roughly chopped, 5 to 10 pulses, scraping the bowl as needed. Add the oil and pulse until incorporated, 5 to 10 pulses. Transfer to a small bowl, then taste and season with salt and pepper.