Basil Pesto with Walnuts
Simple Basil Pesto with Walnuts, a rich sauce that can be eaten with bread and crackers or tossed onto cold or hot pasta or any protein to complete a meal.
Basil Walnut Pesto
How are your gardens doing? My little window sill has been the perfect sunny spot for mint and basil.
In fact, both herbs grew like crazy for being in such confined pots. I transplanted the mint to my courtyard where I have half of a wooden wine barrel that I use for a garden among some flowers.
Wish the little mint leaves luck!
Herbs that rely on my green thumb don’t always make it because I often forget an essential ingredient to a flourishing garden….water!
It seems that the plants that are plopped in my kitchen get watered as soon as they look a little droopy.
I can’t ignore them since they are right above the sink where the dish washing happens!
Pesto With Fresh Basil
The basil was looking vibrant and smelt full of flavor, so instead of replanting it I thought I better use it up while it’s so fresh!
Pesto finger licking full of delicious flavor, it’s healthy, and easy to make using simple ingredients.
All you need is cheese, basil, olive oil and nuts. Traditionally pesto is made with pine nuts, but I make mine using walnuts.
California Walnuts sent me a gorgeous supply of walnuts and lucky for me the timing was perfect to use in this pesto sauce!
For this recipe I used a 1/3 cup of chopped walnuts, so I will have more tasty recipes coming to use up the rest of those walnuts.
What To Serve Pesto Sauce With
Basil Pesto with walnuts can be served like a dip on crackers or bread, and it can also liven up any pasta dish.
In addition to a simple sip, pesto sauce is also delicious with fish and chicken.
I have several other dishes that you can use this pesto for. Be sure to check out these recipes:
Basil Pesto with Walnuts
Ingredients
- 2 cups basil packed
- 1/3 cup walnuts chopped
- 1/2 cup parmesan-reggiano cheese
- 3- 4 large garlic cloves chopped
- 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Put the basil and walnuts in the bowl of a food processor (or any high powered blender). Pulse until the leaves and nuts are broken down. Add the garlic and cheese and blend until incorporated into the basil mixture. You may need to stop the blender and scrape down the sides with a rubber spatula a couple of times.
- Slowly add the oil while the processor is on to emulsify. Add salt and pepper to taste.
Nutrition
Disclaimer
Please note that the nutritional information provided are guidelines and may vary based on the brand of products used. For your specific nutritional goals use My Fitness Pal or Verywell Fit recipe calculators. All content within this site is not intended as medical diagnosis or treatment and should not be considered a substitute for professional medical expertise.
This pesto is so fun and easy to make. I love using the walnuts. My family really couldn’t tell the difference.
It sure is tasty! So glad you enjoyed this pesto!
Lovely pesto recipe.
Pesto is one of my favorite things and yours is gorgeous, Sandra! So vibrant and bright. I can’t wait to make this and eat it with all the things! 🙂
My basil did not do well this year but my mint on the other hand is a different story. I’ll be pinning this for next year when I hope to have a bumper crop again.
Walnuts are a great alternative to pin nuts. Actually, I prefer walnuts!
You will come up with a fantastic meal using pesto! That I’m certain of 🙂
A little basil goes a long way. It’s very flavorful.
Mmm, walnuts are my favourite so this pesto is even better 😀
Cheers
Choc Chip Uru
Perfect duo, indeed! Thanks for stopping by CCU!
Pesto sauce looks so refreshing! I love pesto with bread and will try this soon!
Slices of a baguette is delicious. I also like to sandwich a piece of brie between a few pieces too.
Gorgeous photos Sandra! I absolutely love homemade pesto. Fresh is always best and what gorgeous colors!
Thanks so much, Shelby! I couldn’t let my basil go to waste. This was a perfect use for it.
I love pesto so much! I craved it during my first pregnancy! I haven’t had pesto with walnuts before! Your photos are stunning and I can’t wait to try this recipe! <3
Thanks, Brandi! I craved pineapple. So funny how food can bring back those memories (a long time ago for me 🙂 )
I have walnuts in my pantry, basil in the garden and garlic in storage, just need to get some parmesan cheese when I go shopping.
Perfect! I know your basil is beautiful. Your garden always looks so vibrant.
We love pesto! I’m definitely going to have to give this a try!
Would love to hear what you prepare it with! So many ways you can incorporate pesto into a meal!
I tend to forget the water too! I have a terribly brown thumb that I’m trying to improve! The pesto looks lovely!
Thank you, Marion! I need a few more hours in my week to play in the garden. One day…
This looks so delicious and I love your photos!
Thank you, Mary Ellen! Pesto is one of my favorite sauces to add to pasta and fish!
That pesto looks so fresh and *alive*. I want some right now on a sandwich with roasted pumpkin and feta cheese. 🙂
Oh, that sounds like a delicious use of pesto! Yum!
Gorgeous photos! We make pesto all the time and basil and walnuts is our old standby. You can’t go wrong with that combo. All of the farms here are having problems with downy mildew so no one has it anymore. And my plants aren’t looking so good either. It was a disappointing basil season. 🙁 At least we got quite a bit packed away in the freezer before the end.
Oh, no mildew is not good! I haven’t frozen basil before. I may need to freeze some since I have quite a bit. Curious to know if the leaves turn brown in the freezer.
Your photos are just stunning. We love pesto at home it goes great with so many dishes. I hope mine looks as vibrant as yours when I try your recipe. Take Care, BAM
Thank you, Bam! If you don’t use it all in one meal be sure to put it in an air tight container so the pesto doesn’t turn gray!