Dinner
Keto Zucchini Noodle Salad
Dinner
Keto Spinach and Pine Nut Couscous
Dinner
Creamy Tuscan Chicken
Dinner
⏲ ~19 min total · prep 15 · cook 4 · 4 servings
Published Sep 15, 2026 · Updated Sep 15, 2026
Hot pine nuts wilt the arugula and dull its color. Give them the full 5 minutes after toasting.
Five or six pulses with the nuts chop the cloves evenly before the greens arrive. Whole chunks of raw garlic dominate every spoonful.
Add the greens in stages and scrape between pulses. A full-load pulse chops unevenly and leaves whole leaves behind.
Thirty seconds of drizzling gives a glossy, spoonable sauce. Past that point the blades bruise the leaves and the pesto turns dark.
Thirty minutes in the fridge mellows the raw garlic. Taste and adjust salt and lemon after the rest, not before.
Toss the pesto with zucchini noodles or shirataki for a main at 3.0 net carbs a serving, or spoon it over roast chicken and grilled steak. Thinned with more olive oil it becomes a salad dressing, and spread thick it lifts a keto sandwich. Use it at room temperature; cold pesto turns stiff and dull. Start with a smaller spoonful than you think you need and add more after tossing, since the flavor concentrates as it coats. A final grate of Parmesan pulls the plate together.
Press plastic wrap directly onto the surface and refrigerate for up to a week, as the recipe directs. The wrap keeps air out, which is what turns pesto dark on top. If discoloration forms anyway, scrape it off; the green underneath is fine. A thin layer of olive oil over the surface works as an alternative seal. For longer storage, freeze in an ice cube tray for 2-3 months and thaw a cube or two in the fridge whenever a fast sauce is needed.
A food processor gives the control this recipe depends on. A blender can work, but its narrow base tends to overprocess the arugula before the oil even goes in.
Overprocessing bruises arugula and turns it bitter and dark. Pulse in short bursts, drizzle the oil over only 30 seconds, and taste after the 30-minute rest before adjusting salt or lemon.
Baby spinach makes a milder sauce, though it lacks the pepper. Whatever the green, keep the pulses short.
Cool the toasted nuts before they touch the greens, avoid overprocessing, and press plastic wrap onto the surface in the fridge. Air and heat are what darken it.
It supplies most of the salt and the savory backbone, so I would not skip it. Without it, add salt a quarter teaspoon at a time and expect a greener, grassier sauce.
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