Dive into a world of flavor with one of these easy pesto recipes. Elevate your dishes with classic basil, zesty sun-dried tomato, and nutty spinach-almond pesto variations. Ready to transform your meals? Let’s get started!
Pesto is a great staple to have in your fridge. Add it to pasta, pizza, or bread, or use it as a dip!
These variations on a classic pesto will shake things up a little and give you something new to try!
Pesto is a great recipe to have on hand, it’s versatile, quick and easy!
Why not try making some homemade?
Pesto is a staple in the Italian flavors world and for good reason.
It’s a fresh-flavored condiment, with a rich nuttiness, normally provided by pine nuts and parmesan cheese.
I don’t know what I would label it as really… a spread? Sauce? Dip? All of the above? I know I’ve used it as all of the above!
So basically, pesto is just a blend of herbs, nuts, cheese and olive oil.
This makes it totally and easily customizable.
In my variations, I’ve played around with swapping out the pine nuts for walnuts and adding some ricotta cheese to my spinach version for a little extra creaminess.
The ricotta cheese also creates a really vibrant pesto because it lightens the overall green color which is fun too!
In terms of keeping this for later, pesto freezes REALLY well.
You could either freeze small portions in an ice cube tray and then pop them out and store them in a ziplock bag, or you could measure out 1/2 cup portions and put them straight in a ziplock in the freezer.
You can definitely expect a few pesto-themed recipes to come your way in the next couple of weeks… mine’s in the freezer ready to go!
Easy Pesto, 3 Ways
Ingredients
Variation 1: Classic Basil Pesto
- 2 cups basil leaves fresh
- ¼ cup walnuts
- ½ cup parmesan cheese
- 3 cloves garlic
- ½ cup olive oil
Variation 2: Sun Dried Tomato Pesto
- ½ cup sun dried tomatoes from a jar where they are in oil,
- 1 clove garlic
- ½ cup basil leaves fresh
- ¼ cup pinenuts
- ¼ cup parmesan cheese
- ¼ cup olive oil preferably from the jar the sun dried tomatoes were in
Variation 3: Spinach, Walnut, and Ricotta Pesto
- 2 cups spinach leaves fresh
- ½ cup basil leaves fresh
- ½ cup walnuts
- ½ cup parmesan cheese
- 2 cloves garlic
- 1 tbsp lemon juice
- ¼ cup olive oil
- 2 tbsp ricotta cheese
Instructions
Applies To All Variation
- Put all ingredients except the olive oil into a food processor and blitz until finely chopped.
- Set the food processor to a slow speed and slowly pout in the olive oil until you have a very finely chopped and creamy pesto.
Homemade recipes are always good, loved your version of making pesto!!!
Thanks Puja! I tried some pesto from a jar afterwards and it just wasn’t the same as the homemade version!
I love making homemade pesto! I try to grow my own basil each year, and when it’s at its peak, it’s pesto pesto pesto! Sun dried tomato and basil is one of my favorite variations, too. I remember having it over pasta all the time when I was a kid. Now I can’t wait for summer to come so I can make these!
It’s the best isn’t it!! I don’t think I could ever switch back to jarred pesto now! It’s literally more effort to go to the shop and buy it than to bung it all in a food processor!