Pesto is by far one of my favorite sauces. It’s amazing on sandwiches, pasta, pizza, burgers, you name it! The melody of garlic and basil is just too good to pass up. However, good pesto can be surprisingly hard to come by in your typical grocery store—and it generally comes with a steep price tag. So why not save some money and make your very own homemade pesto?
Ingredients needed for homemade pesto
Basil
Basil is the key to pesto’s unique taste. That’s why it’s important to make sure you use fresh basil, rather than dried. The flavor profile of fresh basil is much more robust and refreshing compared to dry basil, and it will give your homemade pesto a wonderful, herby taste.
Spinach
I love to add spinach to my homemade pesto for an extra vegetable boost. I’ve also used mixed greens with great success. If you want to omit spinach, Use another cup of basil leaves in its place.
Parmesan-Reggiano Cheese
Parmesan-Reggiano is my favorite cheese to use in pesto. That being said, you are welcome to add whatever type of cheese you want. Generally, any aged, hard cheese will do! So play around with your cheeses and find a mixture that works for your tastes.
Garlic
Garlic plays wonderfully with the basil and parmesan cheese. However, I know that some people think garlic can be too strong. Feel free to adjust the number of cloves to your preference, even omitting them entirely if you’re worried about your homemade pesto becoming too garlicky. Roast your garlic before adding it to the mixture if you want an even more robust flavor profile.
Walnuts
Traditionally, pesto is made with pine nuts. However, pine nuts can be hard to find and generally cost an arm and a leg. Many nuts can serve as alternatives, such as walnuts, almonds, cashews, pistachios, etc. Walnuts are an easy alternative for me because I almost always have them on hand and they taste nearly identical to pine nuts once in the pesto. Nearly any nut you find will have similar results, so feel free to use whichever ones work for you, even if that means splurging on something like pine nuts.
Extra Virgin Olive Oil
A high-quality olive oil in your homemade pesto will make a world of difference in its taste. I prefer to use organic extra virgin olive oil. If you find olive oil’s taste is too strong for your liking, a more neutral oil like avocado oil will work just as well.
Add-ins for unique homemade pesto flavors
While the above ingredients are great for a traditional pesto, you may want to play around with different flavor profiles in your pesto to make your very own, one-of-a-kind homemade pesto! Some popular add-ins for pesto include:
- Red pepper flakes
- Sun-dried tomatoes
- Olives
- Fresh rosemary
- Fresh thyme
- Fresh parsley
- Red onions
- Cannellini beans
- Feta cheese
How to make easy, homemade pesto
Once all the ingredients have been washed, dried, and set aside, all you need is a food processor or blender.
- Put the garlic, basil, walnuts, and spinach leaves into your food processor and pulse until they form a coarse paste.
- Add the cheese and olive oil and blend the mixture until it reaches a paste-like consistency.
- Add the salt and pepper to taste and mix thoroughly.
- Transfer your pesto to an airtight container (preferably glass). You can either freeze it or store it in the refrigerator.
How to store homemade pesto
Refrigerating pesto
Transfer your pesto to an airtight container. Then, add a thin layer of oil on top to protect it from the air and help it retain moisture. Seal the container and place it in your fridge. You can refrigerate pesto in an airtight container for up to a week.
When you refrigerate your pesto, there is a chance that the basil leaves may make it turn brown. It will still be safe to eat, but it may not look as appetizing. You can prevent this discoloration by adding around 2 tablespoons of lemon juice to the mixture and stirring it in. If you don’t want your pesto to taste lemony, you can blanch the basil leaves before blending.
Freezing pesto
There are a couple of ways to freeze pesto depending on personal preferences. You can always just put it in a glass jar with space at the top and freeze it that way. Or you can put your pesto into ice cube trays to easily gauge a serving size and pop one of the homemade pesto cubes into your dish. We generally use pesto for our pizza, so we tend to just freeze it all in a glass jar so it is easier to spread later. Pesto in the freezer will last anywhere from 3–4 months.
To dethaw pesto, leave it in your fridge overnight. Or run it under cool water until it’s thawed.
Easy Homemade Pesto
Learn how to make the easy, affordable pesto that tastes amazing on anything from pasta to pizza!
Ingredients
- 1 cup fresh basil leaves
- 1 cup baby spinach
- 2 large garlic cloves
- 1/2 cup Parmesan-Reggiano Cheese
- 1/3 cup chopped walnuts (or pine nuts)
- 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
- 1/4 teaspoon salt (or to taste)
- Pepper (to taste)
Instructions
- Put the garlic, basil, walnuts, and spinach leaves into your food processor and pulse until they form a coarse paste.
- Add the cheese and olive oil and blend the mixture until it reaches a paste-like consistency.
- Add the salt and pepper to taste and mix thoroughly.
- Transfer your pesto to an airtight container (preferably glass). You can either freeze it or store it in the refrigerator.
Notes
If you choose to add additional ingredients like sun-dried tomatoes or olives, add them with the garlic, basil, walnuts, and spinach leaves.
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.