The Great PESTO Post!

Presto Pesto! Super EASY pesto recipes from Kiss My Broccoli!Alternate titles:

Presto Pesto!

Pesto like it’s 1999!

The “Process” of Becoming Straaaaaange!

Strange But Good S2TT

Hey, it’s Friday…you HAD to know the #strangebutgood was happening!

On Tuesday, I woke up only five shorrrrrt hours after snuggling my head into my perfectly formed memory foam pillow. Try as I might to go back to sleep, the longer I laid there, the harder that pillow got, the louder the dogs outside barked, and THEN I started thinking about all that basil my coworker gave me earlier this week and what the heck I was going to do with it! After nearly an hour, it became apparent…sleep was not in my future.

But creamy basil-y deliciousness WAS!

After reading through all the comments on Monday’s post, it was easy for me to decide what pesto recipe to make first…you know, since you guys all left me hanging! 😉 Luckily, Lena saved the day by linking me to her own recipe for traditional pesto!

Traditional Pesto Food Processor

In the food processor went basil, garlic, pine nuts, parmesan, a little less olive oil than her recipe called for annnnnnnd some last thought, lemon juice!

Traditional Basil Pesto with Lemon from Kiss My BroccoliI’m not typically a fan of the grittiness of pestos with cheese so I was happy to see that the lemon juice was the perfect addition to help break it down a little more…and it let me use less oil and still have a nice creamy consistency!

Traditional Basil Pesto with Lemon

By: Heather @ Kiss My Broccoli

Adapted from: Lena’s Traditional Pesto
Prep Time:
5-10 minutes

Cook Time: N/A

Keywords: food processor appetizer dip/spread vegetarian basil cheese

Ingredients (1 1/2 cups)

  • 1 cup packed fresh basil
  • 2 teaspoons minced garlic (from a jar)
  • 1/3 cup freshly grated parmesan
  • 2 Tablespoons pine nuts (Toast them first for added flavor!)
  • 2 Tablespoons olive oil
  • Juice from 1/2 a lemon
  • Salt & pepper to taste

Instructions

Combine all ingredients in a food processor and process until smooth, pausing to scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed.

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After that, I decided to FINALLY try out Kirsten’s recipe that Meghan is always raving about, but since I just can’t seem to leave well enough alone, I again, took the liberty of putting a little strange spin on it! 😉

Vegan Pizza Pesto Food Processor

Just a little bit of nutritional yeast added to the mix (I swear its in there somewhere) made this baby go from “Whoa!” to, “Holy MAMA!! Liquid PIZZA!”

Vegan Pizza Pesto from Kiss My BroccoliSo you know, if you ever have your wisdom teeth out and are seeeeeeeeeriously craving a big ol’ pie, you know what to do! 😉

Vegan Pizza Pesto Sauce

By: Heather @ Kiss My Broccoli

Adapted from: Kirsten’s Fresh Tomato Pesto Sauce
Prep Time:
5-10 minutes

Cook Time: N/A

Keywords: raw food processor dip/spread appetizer dairy-free vegan vegetarian basil tomatoes nutritional yeast summer

Ingredients (1 1/2 cups)

  • 1/2 cup packed fresh basil
  • 1/3 cup unsalted cashews
  • 1 1/2 cups tomatoes
  • 1/4 cup nutritional yeast
  • 2 Tablespoons olive oil
  • 1/8 teaspoon salt

Instructions

Combine all ingredients in a food processor and process until smooth, pausing to scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed.

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And THAT’S when the pesto party REALLY began! Speaking of wisdom teeth, Sarah posted an Apple Ginger Lemon Pesto last year that I absolutely died over! I remember how badly I wanted to make it…and then how sad I was when I let not one but TWO packages of basil go bad in the fridge while I kept forgetting. Well, it was time for me to redeem myself…

Sweet & Spicy Apple Ginger Pesto

But can you believe those sneaky little cashews jumped in when I wasn’t looking? After that, things got a little craaaaaaaaazy!

Applesauce, nutritional yeast, cashews, ginger garlic paste, pepper honey, and some kale (why not?) all went in the food processor with a squeeze of lemon and a little prayer…

Sweet & Spicy Apple Ginger Pesto from Kiss My Broccoli

And out came something so amazing that I can’t quite think of a word for it!

Presto PESTO magic? 😉

Sweet & Spicy Apple Ginger Pesto

By: Heather @ Kiss My Broccoli

Adapted from: Sarah’s Apple Lemon Ginger Pesto

Prep Time: 5-10 minutes

Cook Time: N/A

Keywords: raw food processor dip/spread appetizer dairy-free vegan vegetarian basil apple sauce nutritional yeast #strangebutgood summer

Ingredients (1 3/4 cups)

  • 1 cup packed fresh basil
  • 1 1/2 cups steamed kale (or spinach)
  • 1/4 cup unsalted cashews
  • 1/4 cup unsweetened applesauce
  • 2 Tablespoons hot pepper honey (or regular honey + 1/8 teaspoon cayenne)
  • 1 Tablespoon ginger garlic paste (or 1/2 Tablespoon each minced ginger and minced garlic)
  • Juice from 1/2 a lemon

Instructions

Combine all ingredients in a food processor and process until smooth, pausing to scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed.

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So just when you think that combining weird foodie powers would be the height of my strangeness, the basil love continues! I just HAD to make one of my very own…something a little different…something I’ve been thinking about since that GLORIOUS grilled cheese

Blueberry Pesto from Kiss My Broccoli

Blueberry Basil Pesto, anyone?

Wait a minute…I’m not done yet! 😉

Blueberry Avocado Pesto Food Processor

After a little taste test, I thought the flavor was perfect, but the consistency was just…off. It needed something, but I wasn’t sure what…until I spied a perfect little avocado in the fridge! It really helped thicken it up and omg, it made it taste so BUTTERY!

Blueberry Avocado Pesto

By: Heather @ Kiss My Broccoli

Prep Time: 5-10 minutes

Cook Time: N/A

Keywords: raw food processor appetizer spread dairy-free nut-free vegan vegetarian avocado basil blueberries #strangebutgood summer

Ingredients (1 cup)

  • 1 cup packed fresh basil
  • 1 cup blueberries (fresh or thawed from frozen)
  • 1/2 medium-sized avocado
  • 1 teaspoon minced garlic (from a jar)
  • 1 Tablespoon honey
  • 1/8 teaspoon cardamom (optional)

Instructions

Combine all ingredients in a food processor and process until smooth, pausing to scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed.

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Blueberry Avocado Pesto from Kiss My Broccoli

I only wished the color would’ve come out a bit more attractive…but I took care of that too! No shame in admitting to polishing up an avocado pit to work as a bit of distraction for ya! I mean LOOK at it…it’s GORGEOUS!

Blueberry Avocado Pesto via Kiss My Broccoli

Beauty and the beast pesto…peasto?

Damn, I should’ve put peas in it! 😉

Alright, so who’s coming over to party? I’ve got plenty!

Pesto Party!

 It’s BYOC (bring your own carbs!) and oh, if you show up early, I might even share a few of the party favors I made…

Basil HairWhat?!

What’s your favorite carb…aka vehicle for shoving pesto and other delicious spreadables in your face!?

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38 Responses to The Great PESTO Post!

  1. Pesto goes really well spread on the base of pizza or crackers or really anything!

    I bought a really expensive pillow that was a foam one. I tried it for a month and ditched it because I couldn’t get used to just how damn hard it was (wow that sounded wrong!).

    I love just how many Pestos you made here 🙂

  2. You won my heart at sweet & spicy apple ginger pesto!

    Always down to party! I will be coming with a big ole pizza crust in hand. Because pesto goes best on pizza amIright?

  3. Holy moly. I was expecting maybe 1, but definitely not four recipes today!

    I think the pizza sauce version sounds like it would be my favorite. Just dip some cheezy bread or breadsticks in that good stuff. Or ritz crackers.

    Have a good weekend Heather 😀

  4. Woah, that’s a lot of pesto! I love the looks of that vegan pesto pizza sauce! Pesto is so amazing on pizza. And pasta. And crostini brushed with garlic and olive oil. Ok, now I really want pesto. 😛

  5. I’m not going to lie. I scrolled right down the the #strangebutgood. And I’m going to have it in my belly at some point soon. I’m thinking as a white bean dip so I’m allow to eat more on my competition diet (I can’t wait 6 weeks to try this).

    And I’ll need a party favor. Please.

  6. Wow, so many great recipes!

    And I think it’s time that we, as women, all start wearing basil behind our ears 😉

  7. Calee says:

    You managed to make not one, but TWO pestos I can eat (minus the ginger). ROCK ON.

  8. So many pestos!! I’ve never actually made my own at home before – I may have to try that soon, especially because now I have no many for inspiration! 🙂

  9. You can go ahead and plan on meeting me at the Farmer’s Market in NashVegas and I will gladly take all your pesto! 🙂 It all sounds so good! Definitely flavor combinations that I LOVE and cannot wait to try it in hummus form!

    • kissmybroccoli says:

      Seriously…WHY have we never gotten together!? I’m at the Nashville market almost every weekend! This meetup totally needs to happen!

  10. Lean Lena says:

    What a wonderful collection of Pesto recipes, Heather!
    I HAVE to harvest all my basil in the garden and try them ALL 🙂
    Thanks for sharing!

  11. I LOVE the sound of that pizza sauce!!

  12. pancake and pesto queen!? pinning this entire page because all of these are UNREAL recipes! be proud of yourself!

  13. Wow you really got crazy with your pestos! In a good way though. I love pesto with walnuts or pinenuts. I’ve also made it with almonds and the other day made some with sprouted pumpkin seeds and it was really good too! I like to add in a little chicken broth and white wine, cut down on the oil and skip the cheese to make a runnier sauce to pour over chicken, fish or veggies. Yum!

  14. Can a finger be considered a carb? I may or may not just casually dip my finger in the pesto jar… oops.

    I’ve never made my own- I didn’t realise how relatively simple it is- When I make your lasagna dish at mums, I’ll bring those ingredients and make her make the pesto with her food processor. Give and take 😉

    • kissmybroccoli says:

      Haha! Relationships in life are all about balance, right? And fingers always work in a pinch…just no double dipping! 😉

  15. I LOVE pesto and your recipes are awesome! I love the blueberry one, as I wouldn’t think to add fruit! We are making homemade pizza for our little date night tonight, and I think I might just whip up a batch of pesto for the the sauce!

  16. First of all, I think you should audition for America’s Next Top Pesto Model, because you look like a fucking Basil Goddess in that picture. Second, I can’t tell you how much I love pesto, which means I love this post so so so much. So much.

    • kissmybroccoli says:

      Awwww, staaaaaaahp it!! You’re making me blush…oh wait, no that’s just the pumpkin glow coming on! 😉

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  18. Good god woman! You are a pesto making machine. Pesto goes well with pretty much anything…I throw it in eggs or quiches all the time. It also freezes great too (even with the cheese) so you can add it future dishes all winter long.

    • kissmybroccoli says:

      Even with the cheese? I’d heard that it was best to freeze it without and then add it later after it’s thawed. Though I have to say I think I’m much more a fan of the cheese-less variety…the texture is just a little “off” for me, plus that just means I can ADD cheese to whatever I pair it with! 😀 #eatallthecheese

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  21. Yead says:

    I love this.This is so delicious. It is good for health.

  22. Sarah says:

    We made gluten-free pesto pizza tonight! Would love to try the blueberry pesto – mymymy!

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