Homemade, fresh basic pesto recipe that has a mouth-watering texture and lovely natural taste. This basil pesto recipe is perfect for salads, toasts, wraps and pasta. This recipe is vegan and can be made with or without nuts.
No store-bought pesto can beat this mouth-watering homemade fresh basil pesto. Not in our household at least. Today, we talk about a simple, easy and refreshing basil pesto recipe. Making pesto from scratch is a wonderful way to add flavor to any salad, wrap, chicken meal or even pasta.
If you live in a part of the world where tomatoes are now growing and ripening, i cannot recommend enough topping some of our basil pesto over (pink) taste-bursting tomatoes. Then drizzle some olive oil and add baby mozzarella (just like we did in the photos here). That, my friends is the perfect light European salad.
Enough talking, let’s cook, shall we?
FRESH BASIL PESTO RECIPE INGREDIENTS
- Fresh Basil – the main ingredient in today’s recipe is fresh basil pesto, of course.
- Fresh Cilantro leaves – adds extra depth in flavor.
- Spring Onion – creates additional sharpness and ground flavor.
- Walnuts – one way to go is to add walnuts to the basil pesto. However, you can substitute cashews, pecans or almonds. If you prefer, leave nuts out or supplement tahini paste instead.
- Garlic – adds more sharpness and is healthy too. For a child-friendly version can be omitted.
- Olive oil – extra virgin olive oil creates a bitter taste (sometimes, depends on brand), therefore you can change the type of oil used (to milder version – like cold pressed coconut oil).
- Salt – to taste, optional
HOW TO MAKE FRESH BASIL PESTO AT HOME
Preparing fresh basil pesto at home is rather easy, especially if you have a food processor on hand.
Simply, wash and blend all ingredients and voila, pesto can be served.
- Wash all basil leaves, cilantro and spring onion. Then add to a food processor.
- Continue by adding walnuts, garlic, olive oil and salt.
- Pulse until creamy or add more of a specific ingredient to reach the desired texture.
- Serve as desired.
HOW TO USE FRESH BASIL PESTO
- Add to salads – for example use with fresh pink tomatoes, baby mozzarella and drizzle some olive oil.
- Use as a dip in wraps to create deeper taste and moisture in between ‘dryer’ ingredients.
- Spread over the dough for a pizza (instead of tomato paste per se). Then top pizza with your favorite ingredients and bake in the oven.
- Add to fresh pasta meals.
- Top over baked chicken/ turkey breast and serve with a warm side.
MORE EUROPEAN RECIPES:
- Homemade sausage patties (basic recipe)
- Oven Roasted Eggplant Wedges (with olives and tomatoes)
- Easy Braised Beef Recipe (VIDEO)
- Baked Lemon Mustard Steelhead Trout (VIDEO)
- Simple Brown Rice with leeks, tomatoes and olives
Homemade Fresh Basil Pesto Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 cups fresh basil leaves, heaping
- 1/3 cup fresh cilantro leaves
- 1/3 cup spring green onion
- ½ cup walnuts, finely chopped
- 1 glove garlic, minced
- 3-4 tbsp olive oil, extra virgin, or more as needed to taste
- Pinch of salt
Instructions
- Wash all green ingredients under cold water and chop roughly.
- In a food processor add walnuts and pulse until finely chopped. Then add basil, cilantro, green onion, olive oil, garlic and salt. Pulse until well combined. Add more olive oil (spoon by spoon) if mix seems too dry to your preferences.
- Spread over salads, pasta, gnocchi or put into wraps and sandwiches. Enjoy!
Recipe Notes
- Vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free, kid-friendly; Nutritious and extra delicious;
Substitutions are always possible: interchange walnuts with hazelnuts for example; - If you use on pasta/ gnocchi we recommend you double the batch
- Store in air-tight container for up to 48 hours.
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