Late last night, whilst sleep hid its waning eyes, I got into a discussion about a pesto I purchased that contained yeast extract. Thus, one quandary led to a query led to a discovery led to this particular topic, and lo and behold, thought I’d bring it up here…
So, my curiosity being as it is (translation: my desire for all that is edible), I’m quite intrigued to see what ya’ll may have done/made in regards to winter pestos.
I made kale pesto and everyone hated it, so I had to eat it all by myself.
Sorry if that’s not the kind of reply you were looking for 
Oh, I wouldn’t be at all surprised some of them would be just downright awful (depending on the eater, and in my family, that’d be every single one of them, ).
Parsley pesto is pretty good in my opinion.
Made a quick dandelion one. Well…this exists…
…it’s…well…it’s flavorful, I’ll give it that. I could see myself eating it. Once a month…year…decade…lifetime…
Well, I’ll let it sit in the fridge for a few hours then…
…make something with it. 
you can use just about any herb or nut. Maybe try a perennial herb like oregano. Um, I’ve never lived where it snows a lot, so maybe perennials aren’t so perennial in some places.
Best pesto I ever made was basil-macadamia nut. mmmmmmm
One place made cilantro pesto. I HATE cilantro, and never ate there again.
Well, I’ll be a monkey’s uncle. It’s not that bad, and where it could use some work, I bet I could do something about that.
This version: (no measurements)
Dandelion greens
Parmesan (Very small amount as it had a lot of greens on it as well that I cut off, ).
Ground anise
Clove of Garlic
Thyme
Nutmeg
Honey
Salted pecans (it’s what I had)
Salt and pepper
Sauce:
White wine
Butter
Marjoram
Chicken
I have no idea how to describe the flavor…. maybe a little like an earthy spinach?
The last few bites was even better. Huh! I could actually see myself eating this. 
. Well, this was a fun experiment. Have to try something different when I make another batch later today.
2nd Experiment:
Added a tiny bit of apple cider vinegar, ginger, and Greek oregano. Meh, the vinegar is really overpowering (Even at such a small amount). So I’ll call this one just a tad worse than the first experiment. (However, I’m quite curious to see how my GERD handles this. The last batch did cause a little breathlessness for about 20 minutes).
Ok! The breathlessness wasn’t as bad, but I did go into a coughing fit, for about ten seconds.
Charles, what is in that pesto? Is it bitter, or…? If bitter, a little more lemon can help to balance that out. It looks oily, maybe some added parsley to deal with that and also make the flavour milder?
It’s also very chunky but don’t over process it if you used extra virgin olive oil as too much mechanical manipulation makes the oil go bitter.
I’ve made a few pestos. I like basil but parsley is also very nice. I have used pine nuts, walnuts, and toasted sunflower seeds (very tasty & affordable) & combos. I’ve also made it with parmesan & without. I believe the yeast extract you mentioned is nutritional yeast flakes which have a cheesy flavour and are used in dairy free recipes for that cheese-like taste.
I just wrote up what I used in it in the last message. I have some ideas to try and reduce the bitterness (but surprisingly enough, it’s not that bad).
Yeah, I did put too much oil in it. I made it in a dark mortar so couldn’t see too well. I’m planning on cleaning out the little food processor to give it another try at some point in the future (gave the food processor to my wife to use for craft stuff. So needs a good cleaning).
Yeah, I chose to use my mortar as I didn’t want to make a huge batch, and the only processor I have readily available is fairly large. So I expected it not to be too thoroughly ground up. However, I should have at least cut them up a lot better, . meh, still works well enough.
The ingredients sound great, I’m happy to hear it was tasty. I love pesto.
Ooh, I keep forgetting (maybe writing about it will remind me, heh), but the next batch, I want to try with a little apple cider vinigar. That would both add a little more acid to it, as well as the apple cider flavor.
Woo hoo! 
Your wondrous craft is on of this week’s Featured Projects!
I make my own pesto. I am a member of my local co-op. During carrot season, I often get carrots with their tops in my share. I make a carrot top pesto with them. Pretty simple recipe: carrot tops, olive oil, fresh grated Parmesan cheese, salt, pepper, and oil-poached garlic. No nuts for me. Blend in food processor.
The first couple of times I made it, I found it to be bitter. Then I saw a segment on one of the streaming food channels that said if you poach fresh garlic in olive oil, the bitterness will be reduced. That made all the difference.
