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Transform your summer basil bumper crop into this easy Basil Pesto Recipe and freeze it for colder days ahead. It’s easy to make and ready in 10 minutes or less, and its shimmery bright green color is bursting with fresh basil flavor.
This classic Basil Pesto Recipe, also known as Pesto Genovese, originated in Genoa, Italy. Genoa is the capital city of Liguria, a state in northern Italy.
It’s made with plenty of fresh basil, pine nuts, extra virgin olive oil, garlic, and Parmesan cheese (or another non-vegetarian dairy cheese such as Pecorino Romano). Throw in a handful of parsley to ensure a bright green color, and season to taste with salt and pepper. It’s simple, delicious, and packed with flavor.
Pesto is delicious on pasta, sandwiches, salads, and soups. It makes a great sauce for pizza and zucchini noodles, too. Or, make Pesto Chicken by rubbing chicken breasts (or even an entire whole chicken!) with fresh pesto.
Table of Contents
Recipe ingredients
At a Glance: Here is a quick snapshot of what ingredients are in this recipe.
Please see the recipe card below for specific quantities.
Ingredient notes
- Parsley: A handful of fresh parsley ensures that your pesto is always bright green (basil can be dark when it gets bruised).
- Pine nuts: For more flavor, toast the pine nuts. In a medium skillet over medium heat, heat pine nuts until browned and fragrant, stirring occasionally, about 2 to 5 minutes.
- Garlic: Soften its raw taste by roasting garlic. In a dry medium skillet over medium-low heat, toast unpeeled garlic cloves until spotty, dark brown, and slightly softened, about 20 to 25 minutes. Cool completely before peeling.
Step-by-step instructions
- In a food processor or blender, add basil, parsley, Parmesan cheese, pine nuts, and garlic. Pulse until coarsely chopped, about 10 pulses.
- With the motor running, slowly drizzle in the olive oil and process until smooth. Transfer to a bowl and season to taste with salt and pepper.
Recipe tips and variations
- Yield: This recipe makes 1 cup of pesto, enough for 1 pound of pasta or 8 servings, 2 tablespoons each.
- Storage: Store covered in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. Add a layer of olive oil on top to prevent oxidation.
- Freezer: Pour into a jar and float a layer of olive oil on top to prevent oxidation. Leave enough space at the top of the jar for expansion, then freeze pesto for up to 6 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator.
- Portion control: Pour pesto into an ice cube tray and freeze the cubes solid, then transfer to a freezer-safe bag for storage. Pull it out a cube or two anytime you’re craving pesto.
- Spicy: Add ¼ teaspoon or more crushed red pepper flakes to the food processor before blending.
- Greens: Tweak your pesto flavor by adding other fresh herbs or greens such as cilantro, arugula, or kale. To make kale pesto, omit the parsley, decrease the basil to 1 cup, and add 2 cups packed kale leaves.
- By hand: Homemade pesto is a joy to make by hand. If you have a mortar and pestle, choose that instead of your food processor or blender. Start by grinding the garlic into a paste, and then slowly mash the pine nuts, basil, parsley, and Parmesan together. Finally, stir in the olive oil.
- Vegan pesto: Omit the Parmesan cheese and add 2 tablespoons or more nutritional yeast.
- Basil Walnut Pesto: Skip the pricey pine nuts and substitute toasted walnuts instead. This budget-friendly pesto is just as tasty as the original. Love walnuts in general? Try to Mushroom Ravioli with creamy Walnut Sauce. It’s scrumptious!
- Pesto Cheese Bread: Slice a loaf of bread in half lengthwise, then spread a thick layer of pesto over each side. Top with cheese, then finish in the oven or on the grill.
- Pesto Cavatappi: This is a perfected copycat recipe of the most popular dish at Noodles & Co. There’s so much to love about the springy pasta, creamy pesto sauce, and bright diced tomatoes.
Frequently Asked Questions
This classic Basil Pesto, also known as Pesto Genovese, originated in Genoa, Italy. Genoa is the capital city of Liguria, a state in northern Italy. The original pesto was probably created in the 1500s (16th century) and was made with crushed basil, pine nuts, olive oil, garlic, and Parmesan cheese.
Skip the pricey pine nuts and substitute toasted walnuts instead for Basil Walnut Pesto. This budget-friendly pesto is just as tasty as the original. You can also make pesto with roasted almonds, pistachios, toasted hazelnuts, roasted pumpkin seeds, or toasted pecans.
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Basil Pesto
Ingredients
- 2 cups fresh basil leaves packed
- 1 cup fresh parsley packed (see note 1)
- 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese grated
- 1/4 cup pine nuts (see note 2)
- 3 cloves garlic (see note 3)
- 1/2 cup olive oil
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Instructions
- In a food processor or blender, add basil, parsley, Parmesan cheese, pine nuts, and garlic. Pulse until coarsely chopped, about 10 pulses.
- With the motor running, slowly drizzle in the olive oil and process until smooth. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
Notes
- Parsley: A handful of fresh parsley ensures that your pesto is always bright green (basil can dark when it gets bruised).
- Pine nuts: For more flavor, toast the pine nuts. In a medium skillet over medium heat, heat pine nuts until browned and fragrant, stirring occasionally, about 2 to 5 minutes.
- Garlic: Soften its raw taste by roasting garlic. In a dry medium skillet over medium-low heat, toast unpeeled garlic cloves until spotty, dark brown, and slightly softened, about 20 to 25 minutes. Cool completely before peeling.
- Yield:This recipe makes 1 cup of pesto, enough for 1 pound of pasta or 8 servings, 2 tablespoons each.
- Storage: Store covered in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. Add a layer of olive oil on top to prevent oxidation.
Nutrition
Meggan Hill is a classically-trained chef and professional writer. Her meticulously-tested recipes and detailed tutorials bring confidence and success to home cooks everywhere. Meggan has been featured on NPR, HuffPost, FoxNews, LA Times, and more.
This recipe SUCKS if I knew the the amount of ingredients (ie cups or teaspoons) I would have used it. Since you did not list them I cannot make this TODAY as I had planned, since I already picked all of the plants from my garden this morning. I will have to do the best I can figure out. I am very disappointed and will have to wing it, I have used your site before and never had these problems! I hope you can continue the service I have always had before!!
Hi Linda, thank you for your comment and sorry for the confusion. The ingredient amounts are listed in the recipe card in the post. It can be accessed by clicking the large “Jump to Recipe” button on the right of the post towards the top of the page, or by scrolling down to right above where you were able to write a comment. There is also a slide bar in the recipe that allows you to adjust the servings, so you can make as much basil pesto as needed for your recipe. Here are the ingredient amounts to make about 16 tablespoons or 1 cup. You can always taste and adjust the flavors to your liking. I hope you try this again and love it. Sorry again for the confusion, Linda. Take care! – Meggan
Basil Pesto Ingredients:
â–¢2 cups fresh basil leaves packed
â–¢1 cup fresh parsley packed (see note 1)
â–¢1/4 cup Parmesan cheese grated
â–¢1/4 cup pine nuts (see note 2)
â–¢3 cloves garlic (see note 3)
â–¢1/2 cup olive oil
â–¢Salt and freshly ground black pepper