This pesto is not for the faint of heart, but none of my recipes will be.  We all know how to throw together the ordinary.  THis will use enough cilantro to make it count as your vegetable serving, and enable you to use some other herbs too.  The green chile anchors the cilantro taste to make it seem more substantial.

Ingredients:

2-3 cups cilantro, rinsed and removed from the stems

1/4 cup of other available herbs.  This time I used mint and dill.  Other herbs that would work are basil, fennel, or chives.

1/2 cup roasted almonds

1/2 cup pine nuts

1 lemon

1/3 cup olive oil

salt to taste

3-4 peeled roasted chiles (no seeds)

3/4 cup grated

Harvest the cilantro and other herbs. Remove leaves from stem, rinse and dry.  Add to food processor.

Cut lemon into quarters, remove seeds and squeeze on top.  Add olive oil.  Add the garlic cloves.   Add half of the pine nuts and almonds.  Give the food processor few hits to bring down the volume.  

Add almost the rest of the nuts and half the cheese, and the salt to taste.  Give it one more spin.  Add the green chile.  Spin for 1 minute.  Leave slightly chunky.  Stir in the rest of the grated cheese by hand in mixing bowl.  Add to fat rice noodles, mix well, or with your pasta of choice.  Good with pasta and chicken too.