This Basil Pesto with Almonds comes together in minutes and only requires a few common ingredients. Â It’s a fantastic condiment that can be used in a variety of ways.
Pesto is sooo good. Â I use it in pasta dishes, on chicken, on seafood, or even as a spread on sandwiches.
You can usually find some pretty tasty prepared pesto at just about any grocery store. Â But, it’s just as easy to make it yourself. Â And, when you do that, you can play around with the ingredients.
In this recipe, I switched out the pine nuts (which are traditionally used in pesto recipes) for almonds. Â Just about any nut will work, really. Â I just like the idea of using almonds because I almost always have almonds on hand. Â But, I almost never have pine nuts on hand.
To make this recipe, simply add fresh basil, almonds, parmesan, garlic, salt, and pepper to a food processor. Â Process until the ingredients are broken down. Â Then, as the processor is on, slowly drizzle in some olive oil. Â It’s ready in minutes.
The almonds give this pesto great flavor and they also retain just a little bit of their crunch giving it a great texture too.
Try this pesto in my Chicken Pesto Pasta.
Find more of my recipes on TikTok
Basil Pesto with Almonds Recipe
Video
Ingredients
- 3 cups packed fresh basil leaves from about 3 oz. fresh basil
- 1/2 cup almonds
- 1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese
- 3 garlic cloves
- 1/2 tsp. salt
- 1/4 tsp. ground black pepper
- 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
Instructions
- In a food processor or blender, add the basil, almonds, parmesan, garlic, salt, and pepper. Turn on the processor for about 15 seconds to break down the ingredients. Scrape down the sides of the processor.
- Turn the processor on and slowly drizzle in the olive oil until well combined.
- Store in a sealed container in the refrigerator.
Nutrition
Amazing recipe ! I use blanched almonds and then roast them before adding them to the blender. Other than that, zero changes.
Delicious! I’ve never used almonds before so it was a welcome taste change.
Love this! Excellent on many things.
I know this sounds weird, but could I use almond flour instead of almonds?
Yummy! I also toasted the almonds and added a few extra garlic cloves. We love garlic! It was so good and easy to make.
Tastes amazing :’).
I roasted the garlic on the barbecue and added it to the pesto recipe and it was out of this world
I had a bumper crop of Italian parsley, so I did 1/2 and 1/2 parsley and basil. Also toasted the almond and added may 2 TBS more of EVOO. Delicious!
I Love this recipe. With so many food allergens it was great to have a recipe that still worked with a substitute. I always have almonds on hand also and was so pleased to know that almonds were included. Dairy is life threatening for me, so I had Daiya Tapioca cheese on hand and it still was a winner. I also loved knowing that a blender or processor works. This was a great flexible find.
Thank you for this recipe. I’ve been using it for years! I like it better than traditional pesto, and it’s cheaper too! Thank you so much for it!
This is an awesome pesto recipe. So delicious!
How long will it stay in the refrigerator?
How long will it last in freezer?
Thanks!
tasty and easy to prepare, will definitely make again!
Since Pine Nuts give me “Pine Mouth” (google it if you are not sure what that is), and my son is allergic to walnuts which I’ve used before, I was excited to find your recipe using Almonds! It was so easy, and I have SO MUCH basil in my garden! Thank You!