Lemon Basil Pesto
Fresh basil, garlic, Parmesan cheese, lemon, pine nuts, and olive oil – these simple ingredients make a fresh and flavorful pesto that can be used in many ways. It’s wonderful tossed with hot pasta or used as a salad dressing, sandwich spread, or mixed into sauces.
Basil pesto is an Italian sauce with basil leaves, pine nuts, garlic, Parmigiano-Reggiano or Pecorino cheese, and olive oil. Traditionally, the ingredients are crushed and combined using a mortar and pestle, creating a vibrant green sauce that is most often tossed with pasta, although there are many ways to use it.
If you’ve ever searched for a pesto recipe, you probably noticed many recipes use different ingredients and are still called “pesto.” I’m a bit of a non-purist and enjoy playing around with different kinds of pestos, so today, we’re making a classic basil pesto with a lemon twist.
Ingredients
- Basil leaves
- Lemon juice and zest: I love adding lemon to pesto because it adds flavor but also wakes up the other ingredients. It’s like turning up the volume.
- Garlic: Raw garlic adds a punchy heat. You can also use roasted garlic to mellow the flavor if you prefer. If you use roasted, you can use more, like double the amount.
- Parmesan cheese: Try substituting Asiago or Pecorino Romano cheese for the Parmesan cheese. Pestos work best with aged hard cheese that is salty.
- Pine nut: Sometimes I switch them out for almonds or walnuts. Many recipes call for toasting the nuts first. It brings out the flavor and natural oils, but it’s optional in my book.
- Olive oil
- Salt
How to Make It
☑️ Blend
Place everything but the oil in a food processor fitted with a chopping blade. Pulse a few times to break everything down a bit.
Slowly add the olive oil while the food processor is running. Stop to scrape down the bowl, if needed. Once the pesto is blended, taste it and add more salt if you think it needs it. If you prefer a thinner pesto, add more oil as well.
☑️ Storage
Store the pesto in an airtight container in the refrigerator. It will keep for several days. You can also freeze it for several months.
Different Ways to Use It
Toss it with hot pasta or use it to flavor soups. I also like to add it to tomato sauces for a herby flavor punch.
Or use it as a sandwich spread, spoon it over grilled fish, chicken, or beef. I also love to toss it with roasted vegetables. Thin it with a little more oil and use it as a salad dressing.
More Pesto Recipes
Lemon Basil Pesto
Homemade pesto is so easy to make and goes with so many things. This recipe is a classic basil pesto with a lemon twist. The lemon adds a little zing and enhances all of the other flavors in the pesto.
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Total Time: 5 minutes
- Yield: 4 servings 1x
- Category: Sauces
- Method: Blend
- Cuisine: Italian
Ingredients
- 1 cup fresh basil leaves
- 2 cloves of garlic
- 1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
- 1/4 cup pine nuts
- Juice and zest of 1/2 of a small lemon
- 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/4 of a cup of olive oil
Instructions
- Place the basil, garlic, cheese, pine nuts, lemon juice and zest, and salt in a food processor fitted with a chopping blade. Pulse a few times until the ingredients create a paste, scraping down the sides of the bowl if needed.
- Slowly pour the olive oil into the mixture while the food processor is running. If needed, stop to scrape the sides to ensure everything is incorporated. Give the pesto a taste and adjust the salt if needed. Depending on how thick or thin you want your pesto, you may need to adjust the amount of olive oil.
Notes
Pesto will keep in the refrigerator for five to seven days, although it may darken in color as it sits.
You can double or triple this recipe and freeze the extra pesto for up to three months. This is a great way to save summer-fresh basil pesto. I like to freeze it in an ice cube tray with a layer of olive oil on top of each cube. Once frozen, adding the cubes to sauces and soup is easy.
Nutrition
- Calories: 212
- Sugar: 0.2g
- Sodium: 238.6mg
- Fat: 21.4g
- Saturated Fat: 3.7g
- Unsaturated Fat: 16.9g
- Trans Fat: 0g
- Carbohydrates: 3.3g
- Fiber: 1.3g
- Protein: 3.4g
- Cholesterol: 3.6mg
The nutrition is an estimate only. It was calculated using Nutrifox, an online nutrition calculator.
More Easy Sauces
This lemon basil pesto is such a simple recipe that can be adapted and used in so many ways. I hope you try it soon!
Happy pesto-making 🌿
This post has been updated from the archives. It was first published in May 2016.