Easy Pesto Without Pine Nuts

Basil walnut pesto in a glass jar with two basil leaves to the right and a small white egg cup with basil leaves in the background.

You will absolutely love this lighter pesto without pine nuts recipe that is made with the perfect amounts of fresh basil and garlic, while using less oil. And it only takes 5 minutes!

Course Appetizer, Main Course

Cuisine Italian

Diet Gluten Free

Prep Time 7

Blending 2

Total Time 9

Servings quarter-cup servings

Calories 157kcal

Author Kristi

Equipment

1 small blender or food processor
1 measuring cups and spoons

Ingredients

2 cups fresh basil leaves slightly packed (not firmly packed)
2 cloves garlic
¼ cup fresh parmesan cheese Grated. Or Parmigiano Reggiano, shredded.
2 tbsp walnuts Preferably toasted.
½ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon black pepper Preferably freshly ground.
¼ cup warm water
3 tablespoon olive oil extra virgin

Instructions

Add all ingredients to the blender. See notes.
Blend until all ingredients are combined. This should take 30-60 seconds.

Notes

Put the ingredients in the blender in order, making it so the garlic cloves are close to the blades and the basil leaves are furthest from the blades before blending.

In other words, if using a blender cup that you end up putting upside down to blend, add them in the order listed. If your small blender is an upright blender, add them in the opposite order.

This pesto recipe blends fast. If you prefer to see small specks of basil in your pesto, blend just until all ingredients are combined, which will only take about thirty seconds.

For optimal flavor, use toasted walnuts.

This recipe calls for freshly grated parmesan. To save time, you can use grated Parmesan Reggiano instead (I buy it in bulk from Costco and store it in my freezer).

The least expensive basil I have found is at Trader Joe's. I've used the hydroponic basil from my local grocery store, too, and it was double the cost for the same amount of basil leaves.

If you are going to use this pesto with another salty ingredient (like tortellini), I suggest cutting back on the salt in this recipe. You can always add more later.

Nutrition