Homemade Basil Pesto

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This basil pesto is a delicious, versatile sauce that you can store in the fridge and add to really any dish to liven it up. This is great for a variety of recipes ranging from pasta, eggs, chicken, pizza and sandwiches. This pesto is a great example of how homemade is just simply better. Between the fresh basil, high quality olive oil and Parmesan cheese, this bright green sauce really does pack a punch!

Why you need to make this homemade basil pesto recipe:

Sure, you can buy pre-made pesto from your local grocery store. And yes, Trader Joes has a really delicious one. Yet, there’s something to be said for making your own pesto at home. The incredible flavor of the basil is my absolute favorite way to boost up a dish that would be lackluster otherwise. Keeping this on hand is

Handful of ingredients you need for traditional basil pesto:

Pine nuts: you can also use walnuts, sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds or another soft nut here. Make sure they have been toasted though!
Parmesan cheese: grated. You can use pecorino romano or another salty, hard cheese here as well.
Garlic cloves: skins removed
Fresh basil leaves (about 3 bunches): I like sweet basil or Italian Genovese basil but you can use other varieties of basil like thai basil as well.
Extra-virgin olive oil
Lemon juice: optional but adds extra brightness and acidity to the pesto sauce!
1 tsp salt

How to make this classic basil pesto recipe:

Start by lightly toasting/roasting whatever nut or seed you’re using.
In the bowl of a food processor or a high speed blender, add in all the ingredients.
Start to blend and add more olive oil as you go until the blender runs smoothly.
Taste and adjust the amounts of lemon and salt to your liking!

Where did pesto originate?

Classic pesto originated in Northern Italy. It is a flavorful sauce that’s full of key ingredients like basil, garlic, olive oil, grated hard cheese, and pine nuts. Many people use fresh pesto as pasta sauce but it’s fresh flavors works in many other dishes as well.

I don’t have pine nuts, can I use something else?

Yes! A really awesome substitute for pine nuts are walnuts. They are that similar buttery smooth quality and are delicious in this pesto too!

A PSA about olive oil.

The kind of olive oil you use in this recipe makes a big difference in the final product. You can really taste the olive oil in this so I HIGHLY recommended using a high quality extra virgin olive oil for this pesto. After all, if you’re taking the time to make homemade pesto, it only makes sense to use the best ingredients possible anyway!

My pesto is turning brown when I try to store it. What am I doing wrong?

Pesto turning brown on top is completely normal! The reason it’s turning brown is because of the chemical reaction the chopped basil has with the air. Similarity to avocados, this process is called oxidation. If you are going to be storing your pesto, the best way to prevent oxidation is by either blanching the basil leaves in boiling water before making the pesto, or laying plastic wrap so that it is directly touching the surface of the pesto to decrease it’s exposure to air.

The smaller the blender, the better the results.

I recommend using a small blender for this because there isn’t that much to blend so if you put everything in a large blender, chances are it will be hard to reach a smooth consistency. If you have a Nutribullet, or something similar, that’s perfect. An immersion blender would be great for this also!

Why toast the nuts?

Toasting the pine nuts brings out their ‘nuttiness’ 1000x more! It adds tons of extra flavor and depth to the finished product and only takes a few extra minutes!

Can I freeze fresh basil pesto?

Sure! A fun trick to freeze leftover pesto is to evenly fill up ice cube trays and then freeze so that you can pull out a cube of pesto and throw it directly into whatever you’re cooking for easy small portions. The best part about freezing basil pesto is that it won’t oxidize either!

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