Pesto
Pesto is an Italian sauce made from pine nuts, Parmesan and basil. It's very simple but quite delicious, and goes particularly well with pasta.
Last modified on: July 25th 2020
Keywords for this recipe:
150 g pine nuts
1 
3 bunches basil
1 
4 tablespoons 
100 g Parmigiano reggiano (Parmesan)
2 g 
How long does it take?
Time required for this recipe:
| Preparation | Cooking | Start to finish |
|---|---|---|
| 10 min. | 5 min. | 15 min. |
Step by step recipe
Stage 1 - 5 min.
Put 150 g pine nuts in a pan without any oil. Dry roast briefly over high heat, stirring frequently.
Set aside.
Set aside.
Stage 2 - 5 min.
Stage 3 - 2 min.
Stage 4 - 1 min.
Mix to get a basil puree.
Stage 5 - 1 min.
Add pine nuts, garlic, 100 g Parmigiano reggiano (Parmesan) grated, 5 tablespoons olive oil salt and pepper...
Stage 6 - 1 min.
... and mix again until you obtain the texture of a thick puree.
Do not hesitate to adapt the quantity of olive oil, more or less, the important thing is to obtain the desired texture.
Do not hesitate to adapt the quantity of olive oil, more or less, the important thing is to obtain the desired texture.
Stage 7
Stage 8
Store in the fridge in a closed jar.
Remarks
In this recipe the proportions are not all that important, so you can vary them (a little more, a little less) according to your taste. If you are fond of garlic, for example, you can double the quantity indicated.
It's not absolutely necessary to roast the pine nuts, but I find that it gives the pesto a richer flavour.
If you don't have any pine nuts, you can use walnuts instead.
The basil which gives the green color tends to oxidize easily, and therefore lose this beautiful color. To keep it better, add, before blending, the vitamin c.
It's not absolutely necessary to roast the pine nuts, but I find that it gives the pesto a richer flavour.
If you don't have any pine nuts, you can use walnuts instead.
The basil which gives the green color tends to oxidize easily, and therefore lose this beautiful color. To keep it better, add, before blending, the vitamin c.
Keeping
Several days in the fridge, in a closed jar.
Nutritional information
| Whole recipe | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Energetic value | Proteins | Carbohydrates | Fats |
| 2,701 Kcal or 11,309 Kj | 63 gr | 44 gr | 253 gr |
| 135 % | 24 % | 4 % | 38 % |
| Per 100 g | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Energetic value | Proteins | Carbohydrates | Fats |
| 487 Kcal or 2,039 Kj | 11 gr | 8 gr | 46 gr |
| 24 % | 4 % | 1 % | 7 % |
How much will it cost?
- For 300 g : 13.13 €
Note: Be careful, these prices are only an estimate, you can consult the table of prices by ingredients used for this estimate.
Some recipes that use this recipe
Pasta with pesto and preserved tomatoes
In this recipe, the pasta (whatever kind you prefer) is served with shreds of fried ham and chopped preserved tomatoes as well as a good dollop of pesto.
40K3.8 23 min.
Genoese croque-monsieur
Here is an Italian version of the famous French toasted sandwich: a croque-monsieur from Genoa. The two slices of fried bread hold together scrambled egg, pesto and grated Parmesan.
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Fried egg in bread
This is a novel way to cook an egg in the middle of a slice of fried bread. For a continental twist to the English breakfast, it comes with a slice of grilled bacon and a little pesto. The tricky part (explained in full in the recipe) is to cook the egg white through but keep the yolk runny.
95K 15 29 min.
Olive and pesto bread
This bread with olives and pesto has a very Italian flavour: a ciabatta dough, herbes de Provence and green olives. The loaf is baked in a tin, with a thin layer of pesto spread in the middle between two pieces of dough, and green olives (with stones removed) pressed into the top.
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Italian toast
These Italian toasts are slices of fried bread with pesto, omelette and cooked tomatoes, garnished with a basil leaf.
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Source
Home made.
This recipe uses (among others)
 | Pine nuts: You can check-out other recipes which use it, like for example: Chocolate mendiants, Kalamata Salad, Greek Pesto, Crunchy salad, Purple Pesto, ... All |
 | Parmigiano reggiano (Parmesan): You can check-out other recipes which use it, like for example: Pistachio and spinach pesto, Coriander and cashew nut pesto, Creamy risotto with vegetables , Poivrade Artichoke Salad, Pesto crackers, ... All |
 | Olive oil: You can get more informations, or check-out other recipes which use it, for example: Lebanese Tabbouleh, Raw beetroot mousse with walnuts, Scallops au gratin, Breton Pie, Pan-fried fish fillets, braised cabbage with Noilly Prat, ... All |
 | Basil: You can check-out other recipes which use it, like for example: Salmon and spinach quiche, Zucchini and tomato remoulade, Creamy risotto with vegetables , Italian toast, Quick flaky pizza, ... All |
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Your 2 comments or questions on this recipe
- Very good idea for my next pasta party at home. Grazie Mille !Posted by jh november 20th 2010 at 15:22 (n° 2)
- I love the old classics!As a serving I agree with you: plain pasta is the best.If you want to try something easy and different, add pesto to a normal tomato souce and you have "sugo pasticciato". In that case I would probably not put the lemon.Buon Appetito!http://gemma-olivia.blogspot.com/Posted by marcovasce november 15th 2010 at 13:38 (n° 1)
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