When you are first getting into foraging, a common recommendation for trying new-to-you edible plants is to make a pesto out of it! I certainly didn’t invent this concept, but I had fun coming up with a flavor combination using wild plants readily available during spring in my bioregion. The greens I used were all growing in my own garden and own backyard, and chances are pretty high that they are growing in yours too!

Whether you are a beginner at wildcrafting or a seasoned pro, I would love to share my recipe for foraged wild greens pesto. Lemon and garlic are a classic culinary combination so I used wild greens that are similar in taste to make the most of their natural flavors. Here are the plants I used:

Chickweed

mild, fresh, and grassy taste, similar to lettuce. Good source of vitamin C, beta carotene, and minerals.

Wood sorrel

tangy, bright, and citrusy flavor, similar to lemon. High in vitamin C.

Garlic mustard

rich, mild to bitter taste, similar to garlic and mustard greens. Contains vitamin A, vitamin C, and minerals.

With foraging, it’s very important to make sure you can safely and properly identify plants before consuming them. If you are local to York County, Pennsylvania, Horn Farm Center for Agricultural Education in Hallam offers a variety of wonderful foraging classes and workshops. Also, the Northern Appalachia School of Herbalism (led by Calyx Liddick, who is often a guest instructor at Horn Farm) is an incredible resource for those wanting to study herbalism in a sustainable, bioregional, and decolonial context. Lastly, I want to recommend this video on The Honorable Harvest by Robin Wall Kimmerer, the author of Braiding Sweetgrass which outlines ethical harvesting practices for foragers based on traditional indigenous wisdom and land management practices.

Foraged Wild Greens Pesto

Ingredients

1 cup wild greens: chickweed, wood sorrel & garlic mustard

1 garlic clove

1/4 cup toasted walnuts

Salt & pepper

Juice of 1 lemon

1/4 cup olive oil

Instructions

Roughly chop the wild greens then place in your food processor with garlic clove and walnuts. Pulse until well combined and desired texture is achieved. You may need to scrap down the sides of the food processor a few times.
Add lemon juice and salt and pepper (to taste)
Add olive oil in small amounts, pulsing in between to emulsify and keep the olive oil from separating. It’s finished when it looks nice and creamy.
Pour into small bowl and serve with crackers, on scrambled eggs or as a pasta sauce!