Cilantro Pesto

Cilantro Pesto is a fresh, luxurious sauce with herbal, nutty and garlicky flavor. This recipe is so easy with few ingredients and takes just 5 min to make too!

Homemade pesto is infinitely more tasty than store-bought varieties. No need for store-bought pesto anymore. While pesto always seems fancy and gourmet, homemade pesto is very easy to make in your food processor or blender.

WHAT IS PESTO?

Pesto originated in Liguria, Italy, where pesto is made in a mortar and pestle. (In fact, “pestâ” means “to pound.”) I don’t have the patience to crush basil by hand, one handful at a time. So, I recommend using your food processor.

Pesto is one of my favorite condiments to keep on hand. Try these easy, fun pesto recipe variations to brighten pasta, salads, roasted veggies & more!

It’s easy to make in the blender or food processor with just few ingredients, and always tastes so fresh and delicious.

HOW TO MAKE CILANTRO PESTO?

With a food processor or blender, it comes together in just a few steps:

• Pulse the walnuts, lemon juice, and garlic in the food processor until they’re finely chopped.
• Add the cilantro, salt, parmesan and pepper and pulse again.
• Then slowly drizzle in the olive oil until it is completely combined. Pause the blender and scrape down the sides, then pulse again until the mixture is smooth.
• Serve immediately or refrigerate in a sealed container for up to 3 days or freeze for up to 3 months.

That’s it! It’s really simple to make, and it’s easy to vary according to the season or your mood.

WHAT ARE THE INGREDIENTS YOU WILL NEED?

To make this cilantro pesto recipe, you will need:

• Cilantro: Use fresh cilantro for this recipe. Make sure to discard the thicker stems as it will give bitter taste to the pesto.
• Walnuts: Lightly toasted, to bring out the flavor and yield smoother, silkier pesto.
• Parmesan Cheese: Parmesan is salty and creamy, and tones down the anise flavor. You can use freshly grated or pre-grated cheese.
• Garlic: No need to mince, your blender or food processor will do that for you.
• Lime juice: I always add a bit of lime or lemon juice to brighten up the flavor
• Extra Virgin Olive Oil: I recommend using good-quality oil for the best flavor.
• Salt and Black Pepper: It amps up all the other flavors and reduces the bitterness of the basil.

PESTO RECIPE VARIATIONS:

There are endless variations you could make to this pesto recipe. Here are a few though!

• Different greens/herbs: You can use basil, mint, baby arugula, spinach, parsley.
• Different nuts: You can use pine nuts, pecans, almonds, peanuts.For nut-free version you can use pepitas , hemp seeds or sunflower seeds.
• Vegan Pesto: You can replace the Parmesan with nutritional yeast.
• Additional heat: You can add the crushed red pepper flakes or a few slices of jalapeno to give pesto an extra kick.
• Additional flavor: You can add roasted red pepper, sun dried tomatoes, a charred jalapeno, artichoke hearts, etc.

HOW TO USE CILANTRO PESTO?

Here are some of my faves way of using it as a:

• Pasta or gnocchi or noodles sauce
• Dipper or Condiments for fresh veggies or bread
• Salad dressing
• Sandwich Sauce
• Pizza sauce

HOW TO STORE CILANTRO PESTO?

To refrigerate pesto, store it in a air-tiht container and refrigerate for up to 3 days. Also, to prevent browning and also help the pesto last a bit longer, feel free to pour a thin layer of olive oil on top of the pesto to cover its surface.

You can freeze it in large batches if you would like. And also you can freeze it in ice cube trays and then pop the cubes out and into a freezer bag for upto 3 months.

Some of the other sauce you might like,

Pizza Sauce

Yum Yum Sauce

Tahini Sauce

Recipes made using this cilantro pesto,

Cilantro Pesto Pizza

Pesto Chicken

Are you making this recipe? Then don’t forget to like and leave your comments for this recipe!  I LOVE to see your creations so snap a photo and tag BlendOfSpicesbySara on Instagram with the hashtag #blendofspicesbysara

Cilantro Pesto

Cilantro Pesto is a fresh, luxurious sauce with herbal, nutty and garlicky flavor. This recipe is so easy with few ingredients and takes just 5 min to make too!

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 5 minutes mins

Total Time 5 minutes mins

Course Condiments

Cuisine American

Servings 1 cup

Ingredients

  

• 3 cups lightly-packed fresh cilantro
• 1/2 cup freshly grated parmesan
• 1/3 cup toasted walnuts
• 1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 2 tbsp of lemon/lime juice
• 2 cloves garlic
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp black pepper

Instructions

 

• Pulse the walnuts, lemon juice, and garlic in the food processor until they’re finely chopped.
• Add the cilantro, salt, parmesan and pepper and pulse again.
• Then slowly drizzle in the olive oil until it is completely combined. Pause the blender and scrape down the sides, then pulse again until the mixture is smooth.
• Serve immediately or refrigerate in a sealed container for up to 3 days or freeze for up to 3 months.

Keyword Cilantro Pesto, Pesto

Reach out to me at blendofspicesbysara@gmail.com and also you can follow me on FACEBOOK, INSTAGRAM ,PINTEREST,TWITTER to see what’s latest in my kitchen!