Pesto Genovese is the classic emerald green basil pesto from Genoa, Italy. This fresh sauce instantly transforms ordinary dishes into something delicious and different. And it's so versatile and easy to make it at home. You control the recipe to your taste using top quality ingredients. Try some of the ideas in my list below for how to use basil pesto.
Traditional basil pesto (Pesto alla Genovese) does not include lemon juice, but I like the lift of flavor and the acidity from a lemon with this beautiful green sauce. You can skip it, or make it without, taste it, and add if you'd like. Simply made with fresh basil leaves, pine nuts, olive oil, grated cheese (usually Parmesan cheese) and garlic.
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Why You'll Like This Recipe
- If you love basil, you'll love pesto sauce.
- Easy to make with a food processor.
- This is an easy recipe and such good pesto.
For a twist on pesto, try this beautiful deep red sun-dried tomato basil. It's terrific.
Recipe Ingredients
- Basil: The main ingredient for Genovese pesto is basil, lots of fresh basil leaves, toss the stems.
- Oil: Use good quality extra virgin olive oil.
- Nuts: Pine nuts are traditional and what I prefer. Their buttery creamy flavor is great in basil pesto. Options below.
- Cheese: Get the real thing, a block of Parmesan cheese and grate it yourself, or buy grated Parmesan to save time and for ease of use.
- Garlic: For the best flavor use only fresh garlic, and don't use too much garlic so it overpowers the pesto.
- Lemon: A little fresh lemon juice for the acidity against the richness of the pesto (not traditional). Optional.
Please see the recipe card for measurement, salt and pepper.
Chef's tip: Because homemade pesto takes a lot of basil, if you don't grow it, look for the large clamshell containers in the produce department. They are more economical when making pesto than the tiny ones. I grow Italian basil, Greek basil, and Thai basil. All good and great to cook with. Grow some!
Substitutions and Variations
- Other Italian hard cheeses that you can use are Pecorino cheese, like (Pecorino Sardo made with sheep's milk) along with the Parmesan, or Grana Padano (which also has a nutty flavor), and is similar to Parmesan.
- Use a handful of baby spinach leaves to help keep the color bright green.
- Use different herbs, adding a little fresh oregano or Italian parsley. Cilantro is good too.
How to Make Pesto Genovese
The traditional way was making Pesto Genovese by hand with a marble mortar and pestle. Today, it's a lot easier and faster to use a food processor. This also gives the pesto a smoother texture. If you don't have a food processor, use a blender, but be careful how long you blend to preserve some of the texture.
- In a food processor fitted with a steel chopping blade, drop the peeled garlic cloves through the feed tube while its running to mince the garlic. Alternatively use a garlic press for finely minced garlic or zest the garlic with a microplane.
- Add basil leaves, oil, cheese, pine nuts, lemon juice, salt and pepper to the food processor and process until fairly smooth. You can control the texture by how long you pulse. If it’s too thick for your tastes, thin with a little water, more olive oil, or a combination of the two. Taste and season with more salt and pepper if you desire.
- Using a flexible spatula scrape your fresh pesto into a container with a tightly fitting lid.
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This recipe makes thick pesto. If you want to thin it down, use more extra virgin olive oil.
Chef's trick: To keep your pesto from turning brown, blanch the basil leaves in boiling water for a few seconds, then place immediately in an ice bath, a large bowl of half ice and cold water. When cold, drain the basil leaves and dry them on a clean kitchen towel, then use in the pesto. It reduces the potency of the basil flavor just a little, but your basil stays green
Serving Suggestions
What are some uses for basil pesto besides pasta? Glad you asked. There are lots of delicious ways to use Pesto Genovese:
- Stir a couple of generous tablespoons into mashed potatoes for pesto mashed potatoes.
- Toss pesto with roasted red potatoes when they are hot out of the oven.
- Transform a simple turkey sandwich into something special with pesto instead of mayo and mustard, then grill it on a Panini maker for a pesto Panini.
- Make pesto-mayonnaise by combining pest and a little mayo.
- Add to portobello mushrooms as an appetizer or meatless main dish.
- Garnish soup, like the classic tomato soup recipe.
- Mix with sour cream or plain Greek yogurt as a dip for raw vegetables (crudités).
- Stir it into risotto for a rich, vibrant green Pesto Risotto.
- Thin pesto down with a little half and half or milk, warm it up and made a sauce for fresh salmon. It's beautiful against the orange flesh.
- Toss with cooked, chilled rotini (corkscrew) pasta, add tomatoes if desired for a quick, cool pasta salad.
- Put a few dollops on a platter of sliced tomatoes and mozzarella drizzled with good Balsamic vinegar and olive oil for an Italian Caprese-style salad.
- Add a little to a vinaigrette for a pesto dressing for tossed green salad or roasted or grilled vegetables.
- Garnish deviled eggs.
- Toss with freshly cooked green beans for pesto green beans. Their good cold too.
In terms of temperature, classic basil pesto is best around room temperature so the flavors shine. Warm is good to.
How to Store Pesto
How do I store homemade basil pesto? Place pesto in a small airtight container that's just big enough to hold the volume, then pour a small amount of extra virgin olive oil on top to seal it. This helps keeps the pesto green, and from oxidizing and turning brown. It lasta a few days.
For longer storage, pesto freezes great. I use an ice cube tray like these that come with a tight fitting lid. They come in 1 ounce portions (2 tablespoons). If you have the freezer space, I leave mine in the container rather than transferring them to a zip-style bag.
Recipe FAQs
Yes, pesto freezes well. Freeze it in ice cube trays so you can pop out and thaw just what you need.
If you don't have pine nuts, Pesto Genovese can be made with walnuts (or half and half), even with almonds or cashews, but realize the flavor will be a little different. If you are nut-allergic, try raw sunflower seeds.
To make pesto vegan or dairy-free, omit the Parmesan or use vegan parmesan. Another trick is to use a little nutritional yeast instead of the parmesan as it gives foods a cheesy flavor. I've done this and it's delicious for those who cannot eat parmesan cheese.
More Recipes With Basil
The link below for avocado dip uses fresh basil, and it's a terrific combination. Enjoy all of the wonderful ways you can use this beautiful green sauce called Pesto Genovese.
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📖 Recipe
Pesto Genovese (basil pesto)
Equipment
- Food Processor or blender
Ingredients
- 4 ounces fresh basil leaves, stems discarded about 4 cups of packed leaves
- ½ cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
- ¼ cup toasted pine nuts or walnuts if you don’t like pine nuts, American or Italian
- 3-4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 1-2 large garlic cloves peeled
- 1 lemon juiced
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
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Instructions
- In a food processor fitted with a steel chopping blade, drop the peeled garlic cloves through the feed tube while its running to mince the garlic. Alternatively use a garlic press for finely minced garlic.
- Add basil leaves, oil, cheese, pine nuts, lemon juice, salt and pepper to the food processor and process until fairly smooth. You can control the texture by how long you pulse. If it’s too thick for your tastes, thin with a little water, more olive oil, or a combination of the two. Taste and season with more salt and pepper if you desire.
- Using a flexible spatula scrape your fresh pesto into a container with a tightly fitting lid.
Ann Mah says
Pesto is one of my favorite leftovers and you've given me so many new ideas. I also love to stir it into vegetable soup (like minestrone) -- it's so refreshing in the summer.
Shut Up & Cook says
Two questions...how many cups does 8 oz equate to and do you think Asian Basil would work or would the purple in the leaf make it look ugly?
Sally says
Hi Erina. Will have to figure the cups vs ounces when I make it, probably this afternoon. Will let you know. I did ounces because it will depend on how tightly you stuff the cups. I think the purple in the leaf could muddy the color and make it not as attractive. Might taste good though.
sally says
Erina, it's 4 cups of tightly packed leaves, no stems. Making some tonight for a shrimp dish! Cuts in half easily for a half batch. 4 ounces = 2 cups packed.
Rebecca says
Wow, look at all of those ideas to use this gorgeous pesto! Can't wait to try it on roasted red potatoes!