A simple, classic Italian Basil pesto recipe with pine nuts. It comes together quickly in the food processor or blender. Make sure to read the helpful tips to prevent oxidation! Recipe adapted (with changes) from Liguria by Laurel Evans.
Recipe by Emilie Raffa on May 22, 2022
Prep time: PT5M
Total time: PT5M
Rating
5 stars ( reviews)
Keywords
Italian basil pesto recipe with pine nuts, pesto alla Genovese, Trofie pasta, Pecorino, Parmesan cheese
Ingredients
70 g (appx. 2 1/2 – 3 cups), small, basil leaves (see note)
1 fresh garlic clove, smashed and roughly chopped
3 tbsp. pine nuts
1/2 cup olive oil, divided, plus more as needed
6 tbsp. (packed) grated Parmesan cheese
2 tbsp. (packed) grated Pecorino cheese
Pinch fine sea salt
For the basil: choose small, baby basil leaves (Genovese variety). This is key. Grab a few potted plants if you cannot find this basil in bunches. The leaves should be small and curl under. They are tender and delicious!
For the olive oil: Light and delicate extra virgin olive oil is a must! Ligurian olive oil is excellent for pesto. It’s mild, fruity and it doesn’t overpower. Problem is, you won’t be able to find it in the store. Sub with a good-quality mild oil that’s not peppery or dark green in color (the flavor will be too strong, and the color will be too dark). I recommend: Lucini, California Olive Ranch and La Tourangelle.
Blend the pesto in batches, per the recipe. Doing so, paired with chilling the food processor or blender bowl, blade and olive oil, helps to prevent the basil from bruising and turning black. You’ll also achieve the best texture and flavor.
Categories
Pasta Sauce
Cuisine
Italian
Steps
Add the garlic, pine nuts and 2 tbsp. of oil to the food processor. Pulse a few times until minced. Scrape down the sides of the bowl.
Add the basil leaves and another 2 tbsp. of oil. Pulse until finely chopped. Add the cheeses.
With the machine running, slowly stream in the rest of the olive oil and blend until creamy. Scrape the pesto into a bowl.
Taste, and adjust seasoning with salt (if needed). Stir in more olive oil to loosen the texture (if needed). It shouldn’t look like a thick glob.
To store: transfer pesto to a small jar. Top with a layer of olive oil to prevent browning. Refrigerate until ready to use. It should last up to 1 week.
Reviews
catmum Piper on 2022-05-22 (5 stars): We grow our own basil and garlic and look forward to making pesto every year. We use the small glass baby food storage containers with the airtight snap lids to freeze our pesto, this works well to keep it fresh and from browning, and means we can use these small portions easily. We also make zhoug with cilantro we grow and do the same thing (because it too will turn brown quickly)
Renee G on 2022-05-22 (5 stars): I always wondered how to keep it from turning brown. I tried sprinkling a little white wine vinegar which seems to help. I like the idea from Catmum's comment, putting in baby jars! Looking forward to trying this method.
Don on 2025-05-22 (5 stars): My wife and I took the "Let's Pesto" seaside class at the wonderful seaside "Nessun Dorma" restaurant in Manarola, Cinque Terre last May, and their secret to bright green pesto was, upon carefully destemming each basil leaf, drop it into a bowl of ice water until all the leaves are destemmed, then rapidly and thoroughly shake the water out of those leaves in loosely clasped hands. Try that!! And if you EVER have the good fortune to visit Cinque Terre, prebook this experience on their website - it was the highlight of our trip, coupled with local wine and food to accompany what you have made, from the elevated seaside loverlookinbg Cihque Terre's most beautiful small bay!!
Joseph Campisi on 2022-05-23 (5 stars): Love it, I freeze some in ice cube trays, with out the cheese, use in I pot roast and other dishes. If I'm going to use it with pasta I then add the cheese.
Sabrina on 2022-06-17 (5 stars): thank you, wonderful tips, I have a recipe that I like but never chilled my olive oil or used small Genovese basil leaves, so definitely worth trying, much appreciated!
Ann on 2022-09-06 (5 stars): Incredible!
Janna on 2022-09-15 (5 stars): I tried this recipe and it turned out really good. What else can I add to the recipe? Thanks for the recipe.
Lukas on 2025-08-16 (5 stars): You can also try it with sunflower seeds instead off pine nuts
Ricky Booby on 2024-09-01 (5 stars): Great recipe. I added more garlic that I how I like it. I have an abundance of basil this year so making a couple of batches everyday. I bought a type of basil called "columnar basil" as the green house had old out of the usual paler green basil I am accustom to. Dark green leaves and amazing stronger flavour made a great pesto. Also provided a lot more leaves than the other type (sorry, don't know the name) What type of basil do you recommend?
Kelly Chadwick on 2024-09-30 (5 stars): Hi, thanks for the recipe. I appreciate the allegiance to the traditional pure style and its excellence. One aspect I found confusing is the amount of basil and cheese. Both can be vastly different amounts depending how you pack them and grate the cheese. I would like more clarity on this in the recipe. I made your pesto two nights in a row and it turned out noticeably different due to these factors but was hard to quantify.
Adara on 2025-10-13 (5 stars): So delicious! It’s just like the pesto I had in Italy. The tip the reserve some pasta water for pasta worked great to help thin it and coat the pasta without being too oily.
