Roast carrot, almond & garlic pesto

I just came third in a Thermomix “Dip Cook Off” Competition! It’s not every day you win a prize so I am a little bit chuffed. It involved cooking which gives me more reason to smile! To be honest, when I received the email from Thermomix last week abut the “Dip Cook Off Challenge” it was met with an eye roll. I immediately thought “here’s another thing on my list, how am I going to find the time”. I was chief taxi driver for the weekend as my husband was planning to be in Darwin…pt clients, a Thermomix demo, netball, football x 4 matches, tap dancing, a tap exam, dinner with friends, shopping and food preparation and, my 3 boys were in the middle of exams. Help! As it turned out there was a volcano in Indonesia so flights to Darwin were cancelled…with a little time to invest in some creative thought I pondered the “Dip Challenge”. I knew that the recipe would need to address my core philosophies, organic, simple, using readily available produce (home grown where possible), zero waste and maximum taste. The competition was always going to be tough so the recipe had to be original. Goodbye hummus! Each consultant had to bring a serving of their favourite dip (made in the Thermomix) to the Branch Meeting. The dip could come from a recipe book or, it could be a conversion. In my case, I MADE IT UP! Twenty-five consultants (harsh critics) had to taste test and rate all of the dips and only the Top 3 dips won a prize! I was still short on time so this is my made up recipe, it was pretty much invented as I progressed. If I had my chance again I’d add chilli to spice it up a bit…the red would also look fabulous against the orange & green. Roast carrot, almond & garlic pesto 7-8 medium sized whole organic carrots (washed only) 2 handfuls of organic almonds 5 organic macadamias Home grown garlic Olive Oil Drizzle of honey Roast above ingredients at 180 degrees for 45 minutes or until tender. Place above (cooled) ingredients into the Thermomix and combine with: One cup (approx) freshly picked home grown basil One cup (approx) freshly picked home grown parsley One cup of grated parmesan cheese Dash of olive oil Pulverise on speed 5 for 30-45 seconds or until desired consistency is reached…I like pesto crunchy. All my goals were achieved. Recipe was delicious and my kids were not happy with their tiny samples. I’ll be making another...

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