Homemade basil pesto happens to be one of the easiest sauces to make and the taste is a guaranteed winner. Did you know? Basil has almost twice as much vitamin C as oranges. It is considered one of the most nutritious herbs, rich in vitamin A and C and contains potassium, magnesium, and iron. It’s health benefits include:
- Immune-booster
- Anti-inflammatory
- Antioxidant
- Anti-aging properties
- Cancer-fighter
- Pain-reducer (analgesic)
- Fever-reducer (antipyretic)
- Liver-protector (hepatoprotective)
Things you will need:
- 1 cup unsalted cashews (swap with pine nuts, almonds or walnuts)
- 6 cloves of garlic
- 1⁄3 cup of olive oil
- 4 cups basil leaves
- 1⁄3 cup of grated parmesan cheese
- Salt and pepper
- 3 chili peppers
The Process:
- Add the cashews, garlic, basil leaves, parmesan and chili in the food processor and pulse until finely chopped.
- While the food processor is running, slowly add the oil in a thin steady stream until well combined.
- Occasionally stop to scrape down the sides of the food processor if you need to.
- Add a pinch of salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste.
- Top with oil and store in an airtight container in the fridge for 1 week, or you can freeze it for up to 6 months.
- Toss with pasta, dollop over baked potatoes, meat or fish, or spread onto toasted bread.
Food Hacks:
- Put a few basil clippings with about 10cm stems in a glass of water and place it in a bright spot in your kitchen. When the roots are about 2 inches long, you can plant them in pots.
- Pour or spoon your pesto into ice cube trays and freeze. Pop out the cubes and transfer them to freezer bags or containers. Each cube is approximately 1 tablespoon.
Note: This recipe is adapted from my OG food blog favouritefood.wordpress.com
Did you make this recipe? Please let me know in the comments below how it turned out.
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10 comments
Basil pesto is one of my favourite recipes: it’s simply but very very tasty! I make it with nonna’s basil, and often I use almond and walnuts instead of traditional pines! You can try to eat pesto also on toasted bread with some fresh cheese, like stracchino: it’s AMAZING!
Delicious, looks great I’m hungry now 😊
Nice Clicks!!Looks delicious 🙂
I am going to start drooling right about
now!
I live die anything pasta and herbs 😍
Sorry meant I live for anything pasta and herbs 🤣😍
I can’t say confidently that I’ve tried pesto before lol, I’m not actually sure lol. It looks pretty good though 😊
I love basil. This looks like a simple delicious recipe.
Love it! so simple! Will try soon!
Thanks for sharing, never put chilies in my pesto before but will try it out:) I make whalnut pesto – which is a tip cause its yummy:) /Mary
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