Fresh basil pesto is one of the best things you can make with homegrown basil. It’s incredibly simple with a few basic ingredients and the payoff is brightly flavored condiment you can use in a variety of ways! Pesto is also freezer-friendly, making it a great option to stock away in the summer months to use throughout the year. My family loves fresh pesto on pasta, spread on sandwiches, drizzled over chicken or fish, or as a dip for a crusty loaf of bread. Use my recipe as a basic model and feel free to adapt to your preferences (including making it nut free!) Below, you’ll also find my best tip for making pesto that’s a bright vibrant green color.
Ingredient and Equipment Needed
- Basil – fresh basil is non negotiable here. You’ll use only leaves, not the stems. Note that if you’re growing your own basil at home, you want to avoid letting your plants start flowering. If the flowering process is already in full swing, basil has a tendency to start turning bitter at that point, which can affect the flavor of your pesto.
- Parmesan Cheese – you’ll want to use fresh parmesan cheese, not the crumbly kind in the green bottle. I like to buy a wedge of parmesan and grate myself. Look for the best deal on parm wedges in the standard cheese aisle, as opposed to the specialty cheeses in the deli.
- Pine Nuts – buttery pine nuts are the classic pesto ingredient, but you are welcome to substitute other nuts. Walnuts and almonds are popular choices. If you have a nut allergy, like we do at my house, you can also leave out the nuts.
- Garlic – use fresh garlic, garlic powder won’t be as good in this recipe.
- Olive Oil – I recommend extra virgin olive oil. You could use a “light” olive oil if you’d prefer a lighter olive oil flavor, but extra virgin is what is typically used. The flavor of your oil will come through, so make sure it’s one you enjoy the flavor of.
- Food Processor – a food processor is the go-to piece of equipment for pesto, but if you don’t have one, you could use a high-powered blender (being very careful to not overblend or blend at too high of a speed) or finely chop by hand. I’m very partial to Cuisinart food processors- this is my favorite!
The Secret to Vibrant, Bright Green Pesto
If you’ve ever made your own pesto, it can sometimes turn out a dingy green color, and the top layer definitely turns brown after being in the fridge. If you’d like your pesto to be bright and vibrant- the secret is blanching the leaves first! It might seem strange, since blanching makes the basil leaves limp- but the boiling water kills the enzymes that cause it to brown, resulting in the most beautiful bright green pesto. I personally have found no difference in flavor when I blanch my leaves- this tip is simply for presentation, if that’s important to you. If it’s not- feel free to skip this step!
- Fill a bowl with ice water and let sit for about 5 minutes while you boil your water.
- Bring a pot of water to boil. When it’s boiling, remove the ice cubes from your bowl, but keep the cold water.
- Drop in your basil leaves into the pot of boiling water and gently submerge for only about 10 seconds.
- Remove basil and immediately place in the cold water to stop cooking.
- Remove basil from cold water and blot on paper towels.
How to make Fresh Basil Pesto
- Combine basil, pine nuts, garlic and parmesan in a food processor and pulse a few times to roughly chop.
- Drizzle in olive oil while pulsing until desired consistency is reached. This is personal preference. Feel free to add more or less oil to your preference.
- Sample and add salt to taste. You can also add other optional ingredients, like red chili flakes for a spicy pesto, or a squeeze of fresh lemon juice and zest for a bright lemon pesto.
Frequently Asked Questions
Absolutely- in fact, we have a nut allergy at my house so the batch you’re seeing in all of these photos is nut free! Pesto is just asl delicious without the nuts. Simply leave them out and add a little less oil to make up for the missing mass. I just eyeball, and stop pouring the oil when it’s reached a good consistency. I’ve also heard that sunflower seeds make a good substitution, but I haven’t tried that one myself.
Of course! Just like you can leave out the nuts for a nut free pesto, you can also leave out the cheese for a dairy free option. Many people who make vegan pesto like to add a tablespoon (or more to taste) of nutritional yeast to get that cheesy flavor. With the lack of nuts, you will probably reach your desired consistency with a little less oil than the recipe calls for.
Yes! I make pesto to stock in my freezer all summer long so I can use it throughout the year! It freezes beautifully and defrosts just like fresh pesto. See below for more details on freezing.
How to Freeze Fresh Basil Pesto
Pesto freezes so beautifully, so feel free to stock it up during the summer months when garden basil is plentiful to use it throughout the year. I personally have 2 favorite methods.
- Freeze in a flat “packet”. I like to use my vacuum sealer, but a quart size freezer safe zip top bag would work as well. Fill your bag with desired amount of pesto- I like to do 1-2 cups because this is a good amount for serving with bread or using as a pasta sauce. To freeze, I flatten it out into a flat layer like a sheet of paper. This way I like how they stack nicely to freeze and they defrost quickly as well. I write the quantity and date on the outside.
- Freeze in cubes. This is handy when you just want a single serving to spread on a sandwich or garnish a dish. I also love single cubes to toss into soups and stews. My favorite tool for freezing in cubes are these specific silicone trays. Once frozen, I transfer the cubes to a freezer safe container or bag to store them long term. If you don’t have a silicone tray like this, you could use an ice cube tray lined with plastic wrap for easy removal.
Serving Suggestions
Pesto is great to have on hand because it’s a great meal-time shortcut that adds a lot of flavor, quickly! Here’s a few ways we love to use it:
- Toss with hot pasta
- Mix it with alfredo sauce
- Drizzle over roasted vegetables
- Use on homemade pizza
- Use as a dip for bread or fresh vegetables
- Drizzle over roasted or mashed potatoes
- Stir into soup or tomato based sauces
- Spread on grilled cheese sandwiches
- Blended into salad dressings
Fresh Basil Pesto
Equipment
Ingredients
- 3 cups basil leaves loosely packed. A little over 1 oz
- 1 large garlic clove roughly chopped
- 1/3 cup pine nuts
- ½- ¾ cup shredded fresh Parmesan cheese
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt more or less to taste
- a few cracks pepper
- ½ cup extra virgin olive oil more or less as needed
Instructions
- Place basil, garlic, pine nuts, parmesan, salt and pepper in a food processor. Pulse a few times to finely chop.
- With processor running or pulsing on low, add in olive oil. Everything should be finely chopped, without puréeing!
- Sample and add more salt and pepper to taste.
Questions & Reviews
just made this today!!! it was so unbelievably good!!!!! my 15 month old loved it too!!! and it was so easy to make. thank you so much! i’ve already frozen some for future use as this will be a new staple in our house!!
I just linked your pesto recipe to my new blog, I make pesto pizza with it which is awesome! Just wanted to let you know about the shout-out. Keep up the great work ladies!
http://marleystuff.blogspot.com/2010/11/pesto-pizza.html
What other nuts are good to use in pesto? I saw a comment that walnuts are good….too bad pine nuts are expensive! I LOVE your blog…it's my favorite foodie one and I recommend it to everyone!
What other nuts are good to use in pesto? I saw a comment that walnuts are good….too bad pine nuts are expensive! I LOVE your blog…it's my favorite foodie one and I recommend it to everyone!
Thanks for this great recipe. I plan to try it out soon. I adore pasta and pesto. I just recently found you and have really been enjoying your site.
LOL Sara I just saw your post about my mom. Hilarious. Don't hold your breath. Just kidding, maybe I can coerce her into making a comment. She's done so many recipes from you blog it's about time!
I just made some pesto today as well. It is an amazing thing and it can be used in all sorts of dishes. Those sandwiches are looking really good!
I was just talking to someone about pesto and wal-la! I see you posting while foodblog surfing! Awesome post! Thanks!
Oh rach, you didn't know? Mind reading is one of our many specialties! 😉
Are you serious. It's like you are reading my mind. Every time I want to make something, next thing I know your showing me how. I've been wanting to make my own version of panera's tomato mozzarella panini. Now Im going to go steal some tomatoes from my mom's garden. 🙂
Thanks Carly, so glad you liked it! There's nothing like fresh roasted tomatoes from the garden either. PS I love your Mom. My goal in life is to one day get a comment from her!
Had this tonight at my mom's. She did the pasta with roasted (Fresh from the garden!) cherry tomatoes and holy crap it was delicious! Seriously incredibly tasty.
My trusty food processor finally died–after many years of faithful service. I have one in my Macys 'shopping cart', thanks to this post I will push the 'send' button tonight!
Thanks for your inspiring blog–because of you I started my own blog and am having fun with it. Keep posting!
Pesto! My favorite! I will make this and freeze it for when I need to use it. I can't wait to make some and taste how good it is! Thanks for sharing another great recipe!!
Hugs,
~Victoria~
Thanks for making this look so do-able!! Always love to see what you have put together … and looking so fabulous as always 🙂
I LOVE fresh pesto and all of your ideas are fabulous!! The idea of freezing is wonderful!
Yum!! I LOVE pesto!! At my work, we have the option of buying food there (I work at a nursing home) and they have this amazing grilled chicken breast with pesto mayo… it is to DIE for! SO easy, too. Take about 4oz chicken, grill it up, put it on a bun with pesto mayo and a roasted red pepper slice… DELISH!
Thanks so much for the pesto recipe! I have a huge basil plant and like to see a little variation in the pesto. I never thought of freezing it!
I recently made pesto, and since I don't have any ice cube trays, used my madeleine pan! My husband thought I was crazy, but it worked. I love using pesto as a pizza base…especially during the winter when most food is so heavy.
For years now I have made up a mass of Pesto and frozen it in little 1/2 cup ziploc containers. That way I can take out small amounts as needed through out the winter. I use my pesto in soups and potpie… mmmm. I cannot wait till winter to break into the soups and potpies again!
Thanks for sharing your recipe ladies!
I love pesto. And yes, thank you for the freezing tips. Sometimes I use walnuts when I don't have pinenuts. But I can only ever make a little at a time, because I have a mini food processor! Oh well, it was a hand-me-down from Mom, and I'm not a bout to spend a few hundred on that bigger food processor. 🙂
I love pesto! I love the Basil- thank you for the freezing tips! I also love a spicy Cilantro pesto! Yum!
Thanks for the response, Sara! I've got a basil plant at home that is just itching to be turned into pesto tonight!
EthidiumBromide- no, you absolutely DON'T have to add the olive oil while it's running! Directions always say simply for ease of preparation. Everything is already in there so it's easy to just pour in the oil and you do it while it's running just to mix it all up. You could totally just process everything (even by hand if you really had to) and stir in the oil by hand. And in fact, for a lot of things that call for adding the oil while the processor is running- I add it in by hand instead (like chimichurri for example) because sometimes processing oil too much gives it a bitter taste. So you have no more excuses- go make some pesto!
I wish I could have that panini for lunch today! Great ideas!
I've always wondered… what happens if you don't pour the olive oil in while the food processor is running? Does it ruin the pesto? Living in a tiny little D.C. condo means I don't have kitchen space, so I just have one of the mini 2 cup food processors that does not have the option of adding things in while running (well, unless I removed the lid completely, but I really do not want to be scraping pesto off the ceiling). I've never made it because I've always figured there must be some reason why every recipe clearly states ADD OLIVE OIL WHILE FOOD PROCESSOR IS RUNNING! Does anyone know why and if it is still worth making it without that option?
Definitely worth it! I have a big ol’ food processor, but I’ve always dumped all the ingredients in together, oil and all. It still tastes wonderful!
I love basil and pesto so this is great!! You panini looks FANTASTIC even at 6:30 in the morning. I love your blog!
Your posts are always just right no time!! I have a huge bunch of basil that I had intended to use on the weekend and it needs to be used now oe never. Why didn't I think of pulverizing it up?!? 🙂
I read your site everyday, but after salivating over the recipes, I can only half-way coherently muster up a, "OMG YUM, FEEDMEFEEDME."
http://www.ramblingbrooke.com
My favorite! As a base for a nice tomato bruschetta. Dressing for a cool pasta salad. On homemade pizza with shrimp, roma tomatoes and pine nuts. Love pesto!!! Thanks…