I use this creamy basil pesto sauce as a salad dressing, pasta sauce, pizza topping and more. It is fresh, flavorful, vibrant, and way better than the store-bought.
You'll Need
Extra virgin olive oil: Use good quality olive oil.
Fresh basil leaves: Prepare the basil by removing the leaves from the stem.
Pine nuts: You can also replace them with walnuts if you like.
Parmesan cheese: For the best flavor, use freshly grated Parmesan.
Garlic: I use 3 cloves of garlic.
Salt and ground black pepper: To taste.
Creamy Basil Pesto Sauce
Ingredients
- ½ cup extra virgin olive oil
- 2 cups fresh basil leaves
- ⅓ cup pin nuts
- ½ cup parmesan cheese, grated
- 3 cloves garlic
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
Instructions
- Place all the fresh basil leaves, garlic, parmesan cheese, extra virgin olive oil, salt, and pepper in the blender or food processor and pulse several times. Scrape down the sides of the blender or food processor with a spatula, then pulse again. Keep pulsing until it’s a smooth, paste-like substance.
- Put the pesto in a jar, cover it with its lid, then keep it in the fridge until needed.
Notes
Nutrition
How to make Basil Pesto Sauce?
Place all the fresh basil leaves, garlic, parmesan cheese, extra virgin olive oil, salt, and pepper in the blender or food processor and pulse several times. Scrape down the sides of the blender or food processor with a spatula, then pulse again. Keep pulsing until it’s a smooth, paste-like substance.
Put the pesto in a jar, cover it with its lid, then keep it in the fridge until needed.
Top Tips
- You can make your pesto thick or thin by adding more or less extra virgin olive oil.
- You can use hemp seeds instead of pine nuts and make the pesto nuts free.
- This dressing will stay fresh in the fridge for three days.
- Top the pesto with some olive oil to form an oil seal which prevents the pesto from turning dark while kept in the fridge.
- Feel free to double or triple this recipe and freeze it to use later.
Recipe FAQs
Pesto freezes so well. To freeze it, divide the whole amount into half cups, then put them into freezer bags and freeze for 2-3 months. Or you can line an ice cube tray with plastic wrap, then fill the pesto in the ice pockets and freeze. After that, you can take frozen cubes out of the ice tray and put them in a freezer bag and keep them in the freezer.
Although basil is the main and traditional ingredient in making pesto, you can have a different pesto flavor by replacing it with ANY of the following: Spinach, kale, coriander, mint, or rocket.
What to use Basil Pesto Sauce for?
- Make pesto pizza
- Make pesto dip
- Add it to roasted veggies.
- Spread it on a wrap to fill it with grilled chicken.
- Make pesto pasta by tossing a cooked pasta into this basil pesto dressing.
- Add it to mashed potatoes
- Top it on your morning omelette.
Check out these salad dishes that would taste so good with pesto dressing!
Addison says
Since I started making this recipe, I never bought pesto. It tastes totally different from the store-bought one. I love it.
Sandy says
I made this recipe yesterday, and I needed to add more basil leaves to make it a bit thick, but overall, it was so delicious.
Nova says
I loved it on pasta! It was my first time ever making pesto at home, and it was successful. Thanks for sharing the recipe.
Olivia says
I love homemade pesto; it tastes amazing. Even if you don't make it with pine nuts, it still tastes better than the storebought.
Elena says
I made this pesto dressing today, and it was excellent. Thanks for sharing this wonderful recipe!