Basil Pesto for President!!!
All summer long I enjoy beautiful homegrown or market bought basil in the form of Pesto. Basil Pesto is the bomb. Seriously!
This Pesto is so versatile… It pairs well with a variety of dishes.
The recipe is very simple and it is nut-free. Not because I can’t have nuts, I just never added them to the recipe to start and I feel it’s just as delicious without. If you feel so inclined, add a good handful of pine nuts or walnuts to your batch.
Have you ever made pesto and it turned brownish and yucky by the next day? Yeah, it’s happened to me a few times. Tasted great but the color was not so beautiful; it grossed me out.
I’ll share a little secret with you…
The trick to keeping the pesto crisp and green is to blanche the basil slightly.
Bring a small pot of water to a boil, add a good pinch of salt and boil the basil for no longer than 2 minutes. With a slotted spoon, remove the basil from the boiling water immediately into an ice bath. Drain well and allow to cool.
Simply add all of the ingredients to a food processor and mix until everything is nice and smooth. The color though…So bright and beautiful. Love it!
Are you looking for a vegan basil pesto?
I got you covered. Simply substitute Nutritional Yeast for the Parmesan Cheese in the recipe. Simple as that. Start with one tablespoon and work from there. Add more as needed for taste.
Both versions of this Pesto recipe are super tasty. Try it over pasta, as a dipping sauce, on freshly boiled baby potatoes, with burrata cheese, eggs… Whatever your heart desires. Basil Pesto is great for entertaining too and it pairs well with any cocktail or glass of wine. For other entertaining snacks check out my Charcuterie Board.
Too much basil and you would like to preserve it?
Make the pesto using the recipe, spray an ice cube tray with coconut oil or something similar and fill the tray (cubes) with pesto. Freeze. Once frozen you may remove the cubes into a freezer friendly bag, like ZipLoc, and use as needed on pasta, potatoes, etc.
As always, thanks for reading and I hope you enjoy this Basil Pesto recipe. I welcome any feedback you might have. XO
A nut free Basil Pesto that will make your tummy super happy.
5 minPrep Time
2 minCook Time
7 minTotal Time
1 cup
Save RecipeIngredients
- Fresh Basil Leaves - a good handful, blanched
- 2-3 Garlic Cloves
- 2 Tbsp Parmesan Cheese
- 1/2 Tsp salt
- 1/2 Tsp black pepper
- 1/2 Cup Avocado Oil
Instructions
- Blanche the Basil - see above.
- Place all ingredients in a food processor and mix until nice and smooth.
- Serve fresh or store in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks.
Notes
Serve as an appetizer. Serve tossed with pasta, over eggs, with roasted veggies. It is a perfect addition to any fish, especially salmon.
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