Cilantro Pesto

Pesto is a sauce made with basil, pine nuts, Parmesan cheese, and olive oil. This sauce is very popular in the Italian cuisine. I like it a lot, but it is quite heavy for me because it has cheese. I created my own pesto using cilantro and less oil than the recipe usually suggests.  I love cilantro equally to basil, and the season of the year or what I have on hand will decide the pesto sauce that I will make. Each sauce has it own taste. I like the cilantro herb in the pesto because it is more Asian. This sauce can be added into the cooked rice for a simple meal. The same basil pesto is added to the spaghetti noodles in Italian dishes. The cilantro pesto can be added into the avocado and tomato for a quick salsa. Also, this sauce can be used in baking with chicken. I feel that pesto is extremely useful to have in the kitchen and is interchangeable either for making Italian or Asian dishes.

Ingredients:
3 cups cilantro with stems
1 cup red onions, chopped
6 garlic cloves
1/4 cup Italian dressing
1/2 cup olive oil
3/4 cup mixed nuts or your choice of nuts
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
1/4 tsp cayenne
Juice of one lemon (1 or more tablespoon of lemon juice)
Jalapeno (optional)

Directions:

In a Vitamix blender or food processor, add garlic and onions.

 Turn machine on blend for a few seconds. With the machine still running, add cilantro and slowly add oil and Italian dressing.

Blend until all is well mixed. Season with salt, pepper, cayenne and juice of one lemon. Pour into a jar with lid and refrigerate, if not using all immediately.