Homemade Basil Pesto
By Megan Patterson of Blog Appétit
Fall is officially in full swing which means garden season is slowly coming to an end. It was a good year for gardening since we all were home and had time to attend to it more than usual. Taking care of my garden was definitely a highlight of my summer and I don’t normally have a green thumb so even shocked myself with how much I was able to grow!
But with the colder days ahead, it’s time to start cutting things back to prepare for winter. So this Homemade Basil Pesto recipe is the perfect recipe that you can create from all your leftover garden basil or store bought works as well. You can also double or triple the recipe and freeze it for future use.
This recipe is so easy and only requires a few ingredients. Plus it’s a basic pesto recipe so if you have other flavors or go-to herbs for your pesto, you can easily switch and swap ingredients to make it your own.
You’ll want to start with toasting your pine nuts in the oven. Set your oven to 350F and place your pine nuts single layered on a baking sheet. Bake in the oven for about 5 minutes and then remove and set aside to cool. Once cooled, place nuts and additional ingredients below in the food processor and pulse until finely chopped. Add olive oil and continue pulsing (for my food processor, I use the pure setting) until smooth and creamy. Some chunks from the pine nuts and garlic will remain, you can add more olive oil and continue pulsing until you achieve your desired consistency.
Use the pesto on top of your favorite pasta, as a marinade on tofu, spread over bread as an appetizer and so much more!
Enjoy!
Homemade Basil Pesto
Ingredients:
½ cup toasted pine nuts
2 tbsps lemon juice
2 garlic cloves
¼ tsp salt
⅛ tsp pepper
⅓ cup olive oil
¼ cup vegan parmesan cheese
Instructions:
Combine pine nuts, lemon juice, garlic, salt and pepper in a food processor until chopped.
Add in olive oil and pulse until creamy and smooth. Small chunks from the pine nuts and pieces of basil will remain. Add extra olive oil if you like your pesto more creamy.
Add dairy-free cheese and pulse once or twice to combine.
*Recipe slightly adapted from Love & Lemons
