Wild garlic is a wild plant belonging to the Liliaceae family, the same as onion and chive and ornamental plants such as lily of the valley and tulip.

The name derives from the fact that both the smell and the taste strongly remind garlic .

It can be found in the woods , where it grows spontaneously, but be careful to collect it only if you are an expert or know an expert who can accompany you in your research because some plants that resemble it are poisonous.

How to prepare bear garlic pesto

The wild garlic pesto is prepared following the same procedure as the classic Genoese pesto and is used in the same way, that is mainly as a sauce for pasta or toasted bread.

Ingredients for a jar of pesto

> 100 g wild garlic leaves;

> 50 g toasted almonds;

> 70 g pecorino cheese;

> 80 g extra virgin olive oil;

> salt to taste

Preparation in the mortar

Pesto purists will prepare it according to the classic recipe, which involves the use of mortar.

In this case, wash and dry the wild garlic leaves, put them in the mortar and add a nice pinch of coarse salt.

Start and pound, crushing the leaves against the walls of the mortar and turning the pestle from left to right while turning the mortar in the opposite direction. Crush until a liquid of a beautiful bright green comes out .

Add the almonds and continue to pound until creamy .

At this point, add the pecorino and finally the extra virgin olive oil, continuing to mix with the pestle until the cream is well blended, smooth, homogeneous and soft.

Mixer or blender preparation

If you want to prepare pesto with wild garlic but want to shorten the time you can use a mixer or a blender .

Put all the ingredients together, except the oil, which will be added flush. Operate the mixer or the blender jerky, so as not to overheat the mixture, and work to obtain a cream of the desired consistency.

Pesto with wild garlic can be used immediately or stored for a few days in the refrigerator . If you want to keep it longer, you can put it in the freezer.