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This Fresh Basil Pesto is as bright and delicious as it gets. Try it on pasta, in a sandwich, or simply with a loaf of crusty bread.
‘Tis the season for planting our little garden around here. I usually kill everything – except mint, that stuff grows out of concrete! – but I still try for a small garden every year.
This year we have some tomatoes, cilantro, and basil. I always plant basil, even though the bugs usually get to it and the leaves end up full of holes. Not very pretty, but perfect for using for pesto.
Elle had never tried pesto before, but since she loves pasta I grabbed a fresh basil plant at Meijer (while we wait for ours in the garden to grow) and whipped up a batch of this homemade Fresh Basil Pesto for an easy pasta dinner.
WHAT IS BASIL PESTO?
Pesto – sometimes called pesto alla genovese – originated in Genoa, Italy. The traditional version of pesto uses a few simple ingredients:
- Fresh basil leaves
- Garlic
- Pine nuts
- Parmesan cheese or another hard cheese such as pecorino
- Salt
- Olive oil
You can find recipes for all sorts of different types of pesto that replace the basil with other herbs or greens or the pine nuts with other nuts, such as arugula pesto or basil and walnut pesto. But the basil and pine nut combo is a classic for a reason.
Basil is super fresh and bright. Paired with salty parmesan, buttery pine nuts, and earthy olive oil, it makes for such a perfect sauce.
HOW TO MAKE THIS EASY PESTO
Fresh Basil Pesto is one of the easiest sauces you can possibly make. You don’t even cook it!
Grab your trust food processor or blender and add the basil leaves and a couple tablespoons of the olive oil. Blend this until a paste forms.
Add in the pine nuts, cheese, garlic, and the rest of the oil and pulse until it is smooth.
Give the pesto a taste and season with salt and pepper to your liking. Your pesto is ready to use or store for later!
HOW TO USE FRESH BASIL PESTO
There are so many ways you can use your homemade pesto!
Of course you can toss it with freshly cooked pasta. Simply toss as much pesto as you like with the hot pasta and a bit of the pasta cooking water. You can even add in some grilled shrimp or any veggies you like.
You can even use this Fresh Basil Pesto in my Creamy Pesto Pasta with Shrimp!
Pesto also makes for a great spread on sandwiches, sauce on homemade pizza (try using 30-minute pizza crust!), or as a topping for roasted vegetables.
Or try serving it alongside Extra Virgin Olive Oil Dip with a loaf of crusty bread. It’s one of my favorite dips for fresh baguette!
CAN PESTO BE FROZEN?
Want to store your homemade pesto for later?
It’ll keep well in the refrigerator, in an airtight container, for up to 3 days. But I love freezing pesto for longer-term storage!
Pop your fresh pesto into the freezer-safe container of your choice and freeze for up to 3 months. You can even freeze it in an ice cube tray; just pop the cubes out once they’re frozen solid and store them in a zip-top freezer bag. Then you can take out and thaw as much or as little as you need!
Having this pesto recipe up your sleeve will come in handy any time you find yourself with an excess of fresh basil.
Fresh Basil Pesto
Ingredients
- 3 cups packed fresh basil
- ⅔ cup extra virgin olive oil
- ½ cup pine nuts toasted until golden and cooled
- ⅔ cup grated Parmesan cheese
- 2-3 cloves garlic minced
- Salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- In a food processor or blender, combine basil and about 2 tablespoons of the extra virgin olive oil, blend into a paste. Add pine nuts, Parmesan cheese, garlic, and remaining oil and pulse until smooth. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
Notes
- Makes about 1 ½ cups.
- Basil Pesto can be made up to three days in advance. Refrigerate it in a sealed container.
- If you cannot find pine nuts, you can substitute them with a variety of other items such as walnuts, almonds, sunflower seeds, or pistachios.
- If you prefer your basil pesto to be a little thinner, simply drizzle in more olive oil until you reach the desired consistency.
- If you are unsure how to toast the pine nuts, check out this guide on How to Toast Nuts.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Nothing beats freshly made pesto slathered on a nice slice of bread. Yum!
I love making basil pesto; it’s one of my favorite things to make and use for the week on salads, omelets and grilled veggies. Lovely recipe!
I adore pesto. The pine nuts is an interesting addition. I was just thinking about a pesto pasta dish, and lo and behold, here is your recipe. Thanks.
I just found your blog and love it! The photography is beautiful and all your recipes are intoxicating! Pesto is one of my favorite sauces as you can make so many versions of it based on your mood. My favorite is one I made with cilantro and cashews.
I just made basil pesto last week and I used the basil from the plant that I haven’t killed. Which is quite surprising considering I have no green thumb. So delicious and it’s so wonderful when you can use the freshest ingredients.
Love the pictures, Jamie!
I live in south alabama and have really good luck planting the basil from seeds. I grow it in the holes of cinder blocks around the peremiter of my garden. I can plant 4 blocks from one packet of seed. It just goes wild and the pesto is wonderful. I like walnuts better than pine nuts and I agree with the olive oil on top….it freezes wonderfully. I also expermined with freezing the leaves this year. I washed and spin dried them……then sprayed them with my misto with olive oil, layed them out flat on a cookie sheet lined with parchment and froze in a single layer…..when frozen layer them in a tupperware bowl and refreez. They came out great. Pesto is such a wonderful little joy in life!
I looooove pesto! I have managed to kill my plants this year, though – it just wasn’t meant to be, I guess. But there’s always next year…! :)
We love to have fresh basil in summer. I haven’t had luck doing basil in pots, but we pluck it right into the dirt in the backyard in our make shift garden next to the tomatoes (gives them a great flavor) and voila, we get more basil than we know what to do with. I do water the garden frequently as it is very hot here in Nashville. But maybe doing pots is the reason for failure. I’m not sure why they like the ground most. We just made some recently with walnuts because the price of pine nuts is around $25 a pound right now. Another trick I learned from Marcella Hazan is to add a tablespoon of soft butter at the end. The pesto gets super creamy.
LOLOLOL I couldn’t help but laugh at this post; you just described me to a T (whatever the T stands for, I really never knew)
I can not TELL you how many times I have dragged the soil through my house because I did not want to walk it all the way around the back of the house.
And yes, I actually planted those store bought plants THREE times before I saw the little “warning label”.
Luckily I got some from a garden center and with Bonnies Plant food my basil THRIVED. Until we went on a 9 days vacation and it died.
Sigh!
Love love the story and will definitely be making this recipe.
Have I mentioned I completely ADORE your blog?
☺
Cheers
Tara-
I am so glad that I am not alone with all my randomness! Thanks so much for stopping by and for your kind words!
-Jamie
The best raw sauce in the world! So simple and quick to make.
Thanks @JeninWA for the tip on our to build a sustainable basil supply!