Pesto is super easy to make and tastes much better when it’s freshly made. Traditionally, pesto consists of ground pine nuts, hard cheese, garlic, basil, and olive oil. You can add all of those things in this recipe, just add more olive oil or water as needed to ensure it isn’t too thick. My favorite way to prepare it is to add some garlic to a hot pan, add my cooked pasta, toss, turn off the heat, and add the pesto along with extra pine nuts and halved cherry tomatoes. So. Damn. Good. Seriously.
**This recipe doesn’t contain cheese. However, if you are a cheese person, simply add 1/4-1/3 cup of parmigiano reggiano or any hard salty cheese you can get your hands on. In addition to this, I recommend adding slightly more olive oil so everything blends smoothly.
**Also, if you’re looking to cut down on your salt intake, swap out the salt and use more lemon juice 🙂
vegan, Dairy-free, gluten-free, plant-based
What you need:
(this recipe is enough for about 18oz of pasta, serving at least 4-5 people)
- 4 oz fresh basil
- 1/4 cup olive oil (use the good stuff)
- 1/2-1 tsp of salt (salt to your taste)
- Juice of one lemon
- 2-3 tablespoons of water
- 1/4 cup roasted pine nuts
- blender (food processor works too)
How to make:
l) Rinse basil, tear off any thick stems and dispose as you please.
ll) Add the basil leaves, lemon juice, salt, and olive oil to the blender and blend. Poor in the water as needed to blend properly.
*Make sure to salt to taste. If you don’t want to use as much salt but still want the flavor, use more lemon juice and adjust accordingly.
lll) Once blended smooth, add pine nuts and pulse your blender until pine nuts are well incorporated but not blended into a paste.
lV) Boil your pasta and add the pesto! Or, put in a airtight container and store in the fridge for up to 1 week. Enjoy!!
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I hope you like this recipe and give it a try! Let me know if you do by commenting below. Thanks for checking out my blog! <3