Muristek
Carrot and beet tops are nutritious, and easily whizzed into a fresh-tasting pesto to dig into throughout the week
Market vendors sat on the ground next to mountains of carrots, beetroots, radishes and onions. What struck me about this Moroccan market, however, wasn’t just the sheer scale of these piles of fresh vegetables, but the fact that they all had their green tops still. Bushy-tail-like carrot tops outshone and complemented the vivid colour of the carrots themselves, beetroot leaves were perky and reminded me of ruby chard, and the radish greens were crisp and appetising. Seeing all this abundance made it all too clear that this was fresh, nutritious food that’s often stripped from the plant and discarded, and not even saved for animal feed or composting into the soil. Especially once you learn that the tops and even the stalks can be whizzed up, so long as they are finely cut before blending to avoid any stringy, fibrous pieces ruining your root top pesto or salsa.
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