Simple Garlic and Basil Pesto

  4.6 – 239 reviews  • Vegetarian

This salsa is for you if you prefer something else from the typical salsa. Everyone will want more of these and they are perfect for potlucks. Serve chilled with tortilla chips.

Prep Time: 15 mins
Total Time: 15 mins
Servings: 12
Yield: 12 servings

Ingredients

  1. 3 cups chopped fresh basil
  2. 1 cup extra virgin olive oil
  3. ½ cup pine nuts
  4. ⅛ cup Brazil nuts
  5. ⅔ cup grated Parmesan cheese
  6. 2 tablespoons minced garlic
  7. ½ teaspoon chili powder

Instructions

  1. Place the basil in a blender. Pour in about 1 tablespoon of the oil, and blend basil into a paste. Gradually add pine nuts, Brazil nuts, Parmesan cheese, garlic, chili powder, and remaining oil. Continue to blend until smooth.

Nutrition Facts

Calories 234 kcal
Carbohydrate 2 g
Cholesterol 4 mg
Dietary Fiber 1 g
Protein 4 g
Saturated Fat 4 g
Sodium 70 mg
Sugars 0 g
Fat 24 g
Unsaturated Fat 0 g

Reviews

Kelsey Ramirez
I added sunflower seeds instead of Brazilian nuts and added more cheese and some powdered garlic on top of the minced garlic. Didn’t add the chili powder. Came out great!
Laura Adams
I love this recipe. I use it for my copycat Super Food Salad recipe from the Habit Grill. So yummy.
Richard Vasquez
Excellent recipe. I did leave out the brazil nut & chili & added 1 TBSP fresh lemon juice. Thank u
Sara Golden
love this recipe!
Brandi Mejia
this is my fav Pesto recipe. My family loves it!! So simple
Ronald Cook
Very much liked this pesto. I have 3basil plants that needed thinning. This recipe did the trick.
Brittany Gallegos
This recipe turned out great! I added just a small bit of fresh jalapeno to give it a little kick.
Victoria Hunter
This was an impulse decision, and I had to make a few substitutions. I had no Brazil nuts and I don’t eat dairy, so I used a bit of chopped hazelnut and a dash of salt. Oh! I also added a touch of mint. Mm-mm! This was delicious over baked chicken breast. It was gone before I thought of snapping a pic.
Mary Sanders
I had a bunch of basil to use up from my garden so this recipe worked perfect. My husband and I loved it! The only thing I did different was to add some extra olive oil and a bit of sea salt.
Tammy Robbins
Love it recipe! So much better than buying it premade at the store. Used it on linguine with shrimp and it was so, so good! Super easy to do in your NutriBullet!
Blake Rodgers
I made it exactly like the recipe except omitted the Brazil nuts. It is excellent. When serving tonight, I intend to offer more olive oil and toasted pine nuts with each dish, as desired. I’m serving it tonight with sautéed chicken, broccoli and tomatoes over pasta. This pesto sauce tastes exactly like the one used in a dish I used to get years ago at my favorite Italian restaurant in Oklahoma City. He called it Broccoli and Tomato Basilica.
Brandon Woods
Easy and perfect! My picky family (including a 6 year old) loved it. My husband doesn’t like rich, creamy sauces with pasta so this was a great choice. I use fresh basil from my herb garden. I put this with penne and seafood. Thank you for submitting this!
Mrs. Katherine Cochran
I would add more garlic and parmesan cheese, if you need additional salt.
Matthew Smith
Best Pesto we’ve ever tasted! Wouldn’t change a thing.
Daniel Campbell
I used walnuts in place of Brazil nuts and forgot the chili powder but it turned out great.
Eric Hammond
Very easy, frsh tasting. I’ll try a little less parm next time to bring out the basil. Yum!
Robert Logan
Didn’t use Brazil nuts or chilli powder.
Joshua Thomas
This was so good! One time, and it’s been voted a family favorite!
Dylan Kemp
Loved it! As some suggested, I halved the oil and it was perfect. Used in for a Chicken Pesto dish and then ate the leftover pesto with crackers and it was fantastic!
Heather Brown
I made this with the following changes: about 3/4 cup toasted pine nuts, 2/3 cup grated pecorino-romano cheese and 2 very large fresh whole cloves of garlic (in addition to the fresh basil and EVOO). I did not add Brazil nuts nor chili powder so I guess my version is more of a traditional pesto but I love it. Thank you for the inspiration though!
Emma Thompson
Excellent pesto. I’ve been making it for years. I make a couple of small changes based on ingredient availability and personal taste. I use macadamia nuts instead of brazil, because I can never find them. (Accidentally bought salted nuts once- and just rinsed them good. It was fine.) I toast the nuts to bring on the flavor. And, I use a little less garlic (1T-1.5T), and I increase the cheese to a full cup…just because, who doesn’t love more cheese? My boys wait to lick the bowl like it was chocolate cake batter.

 

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