Easy Pesto Recipe
Want to make authentic basil pesto at home? It only takes 10 minutes and a handful of fresh ingredients to make a vibrant, homemade pesto that beats any store-bought.
Servings: 4 servings (¼ cup each)
Equipment
- Food processor or blender (with pulse setting)
Ingredients
- 2 cups fresh basil leaves packed
- ½ cup extra virgin olive oil
- ⅓ cup Parmigiano Reggiano cheese (or regular parmesan) finely grated
- ¼ cup Pecorino Romano cheese finely grated
- ¼ cup pine nuts
- 2 medium garlic cloves peeled
- Salt to taste
Instructions
- Add olive oil, parmesan, pecorino, and garlic to a food processor or blender with a “pulse” setting. Pulse mixture a few times until garlic is roughly chopped.
- Scrape down the sides. Add basil, pine nuts, and salt.
- Pulse until desired texture/chunkiness, stopping to scrape down sides as needed. Enjoy!
Video
Notes
- Wash and gently pat dry basil before using.
- You can use just parmesan cheese (heaping ½ cup) if preferred, although the blend of cheese is traditional!
- Don’t have pine nuts? Use chopped walnuts!
- Prefer a more oily/looser pesto? Add a splash more olive oil.
- Pulse pesto instead of blending it on constant speed, to prevent the blades from heating up, which can dull both the color and flavor of pesto.
Nutrition
Serving: 1serving | Calories: 357kcal | Carbohydrates: 2g | Protein: 7g | Fat: 37g | Saturated Fat: 7g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 6g | Monounsaturated Fat: 22g | Cholesterol: 12mg | Sodium: 220mg | Potassium: 105mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 0.5g | Vitamin A: 727IU | Vitamin C: 3mg | Calcium: 191mg | Iron: 1mg