A quick 5-minute Basil Pesto packs so much flavor, it’s hard not to eat it right out of the jar!
Pesto is a delicious basil sauce with olive oil, pine nuts and a bit of Parmesan cheese. It requires no cooking and comes together in just a few minutes
It’s perfect on pasta but also makes a great dipping sauce for bread, and a brush-on-marinade for meat. Stir it into a bit of mayonnaise for a delicious dip!
The Magic of Pesto
What is Pesto? Pesto originated in Italy and is a paste or sauce made with with fresh basil leaves, garlic, pine nuts (or walnuts or almonds), salt, and a hard cheese like Parmesan or pecorino romano. It’s not just for pasta, use it for sauces, as a dip to add it to soup.
Easy freezing – If your garden is overflowing wiht basil, make big batches and freeze it. I freeze in ice cube trays and drop a cube or two in when when making pasta sauce!
Leftover pesto is also great as a dipping sauce for homemade garlic bread. With a versatile recipe like this, how can you go wrong?
Ingredients for Pesto
Basil – For a classic basil pesto sauce, use fresh basil leaves from the garden or farmer’s market. If you’re low, substitute some or all of the basil with other fresh herbs or greens. Try parsley, dill, a bit of mint, spinach, arugula, or kale.
Olive oil – A mild-flavored oil works great for this recipe letting the flavor of the herbs shine through. The most common oil for this is olive oil, you can also use canola oil, grapeseed oil, or avocado oil.
Nuts – Pine nuts are the classic choice but they’re also very expensive. You can use other nuts like almonds, walnuts, or pistachios. If changing the nuts, use any shelled nuts you have; just note the texture may vary.
Cheese – We love using parmesan cheese in this recipe! It is the perfect slightly salty hard cheese. Other great cheeses include Romano or Grana Padano.
How to Make Pesto
To make it easy, I make this creamy basil pesto in a food processor. If you don’t have one, a personal blender or mortar and pestle will work too.
- Pulse basil and olive oil in a food processor (per the recipe below) to make a paste.
- Slowly add the remaining ingredients in order and pulse until smooth.
- Season with salt to taste.
Can You Freeze Pesto?
Pesto is great for freezing!
- Scoop into a zippered bag and label it with the date. It should keep about 6 months.
- Another handy way to freeze pesto is to pour it into ice cube trays. Once the cubes are frozen, put them in a zippered bag and pull out a cube or two as needed.
Use it to make pasta salads for summer (or even adding it to Caprese salad or bruschetta)
Delicious Pesto Recipes
Did you love this Basil Pesto? Be sure to leave a rating and a comment below!
Easy Homemade Basil Pesto
Fresh basil pesto is so flavorful. Serve on chicken, pasta or use as a dip for bread!
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Place basil in a food processor with 1 tablespoon of oil and blend into a paste.
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Slowly add remaining ingredients in order, scraping the sides as needed. Blend until smooth.
Short on Basil? Add in some other herbs or greens (parsley, dill or even spinach work well)!
Choose a light-flavored oil. Canola oil, grapeseed oil, or avocado oil work too.
Toast the nuts for extra flavor.
Calories: 153 | Carbohydrates: 1g | Protein: 4g | Fat: 15g | Saturated Fat: 3g | Cholesterol: 6mg | Sodium: 231mg | Potassium: 65mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin A: 487IU | Vitamin C: 2mg | Calcium: 113mg | Iron: 1mg
Nutrition information provided is an estimate and will vary based on cooking methods and brands of ingredients used.
Course Dip, Dressing, Sauce
Cuisine American, Italian© SpendWithPennies.com. Content and photographs are copyright protected. Sharing of this recipe is both encouraged and appreciated. Copying and/or pasting full recipes to any social media is strictly prohibited. Please view my photo use policy here.
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