Editor's note:Use this recipe to make Rawia Bishara'sEggplant Napoleon.
The first time I ever tasted pesto, I was hooked. I remember the first meal I made using it like it was yesterday—linguini tossed with pesto, topped with fried eggplant and served with fresh home-baked bread. When I use pesto this way, as a sauce, I generally make it with pine nuts. If I'm going to incorporate it into a dish, I use almonds, which are less expensive.
Ingredients
Makes 2 cups
Step 1
Put the garlic in the bowl of a food processor and pulse until coarsely chopped. Toss in the nuts, Parmesan, if using, pepper and salt and chop until the nuts are finely crushed, about 1 minute. Add the basil, oil and lemon juice and pulse for 1 minute more, until smooth. Stir in red pepper flakes, if desired.
Step 2
To store, transfer the pesto to a sterilized jar with a tight-fitting lid. Pour a thin layer of olive oil on top of the pesto, seal and refrigerate up to 10 days or freeze up to 3 months.
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Reviews (12)
Back to TopThis has become my go to pesto. I love the lemon addition it adds a lightness and I think helps preserve the it, along with putting a saran wrap on top when storing. Will try more EVO as others have suggested.
sanny1
Boston, MA
6/19/2020
Worst Pesto Ever! Adding the lemon juice was a big mistake. I have made pesto sauce for years. Most of the time I included only pine nuts, raw garlic, olive oil, Parmesan cheese fresh basil leaves and maybe a pinch of salt to taste. I have found that walnuts make an acceptable substitute since the most available pine nuts are now from China and I have trust issues with quality control with their foods along with recent complaints of lingering, foul tastes. After reading the reviews I put only the juice of one lemon in.. it was still way too strong and other than trying to keep the sauce green (easily achieved by quickly putting it into zip-loc bags or otherwise keeping it away from the air) I can see no value in adding the sour notes. Back to the old, time proven recipes! NO MORE LEMONS!
Steveinlb
California
8/15/2018
While very good, you just can't beat the basil pesto recipe in the original Moosewood cookbook (1977). It is very similar to this, but also takes a half-stick of melted butter and only 3 cups of basil and 3/4 cup of fresh parsley. I have made it so often over the past 38 years that my book opens right to it. It does not call for lemon.
katpages1
8/4/2017
I give this recipe three stars because I believe that one lemon would have been sufficient. Other than that, it's a great recipe.
juliew
Boise, Idaho
9/12/2015
Delicious with almonds. Double the olive oil for a pesto that is better for pasta sauce. Leave as is for a spreadable pesto (on top of baguette, bagels, etc).
meg7roe
Portland, OR
7/23/2015
The lemon in this pesto makes for a very light, bright flavor. I have made many pestos, some with basil, mint or parsley. I'll use this one as my standard from now on.
kathiwojo
Monterey, CA
9/12/2014
GREAT! Excellent proportions; also added a bit of lemon zest. I made this with toasted walnuts and it was a rich, complex pesto.
elloken
Mercer Island, WA
8/27/2014
The best pesto EVER, I think. So light and fresh~
ktsawrey
Westford, MA
7/24/2014
I forgot to give it a fork rating - definitely a 4.
LCrespi
Brooklyn, NY
7/22/2014
I agree with the previous reviewers. This is a delicious pesto. The lemon brightens it and the garlic gives it punch. I always add a handful of mint to my basil pesto also which gives the basil a boost as well (they are in the same family). My whole gang loved it and said it was my best so far.
LCrespi
Brooklyn, NY
7/22/2014
Awesome! I was looking for a pesto recipe that was a little different than than the usual basil pesto. This recipe has more pine nuts less and less cheese than most pestos. However--the real star is the lemon. I halved the recipe and used 1 or 2 tsp grated lemon peel and juice from a 1/4 of a lemon. The flavor is bright and a refreshing take on a classic.
waistfire
Seattle, WA
6/5/2014
This was a light and delicious Pesto! 4 cups packed of basil is alot - so I completely halved the recipe. I tasted the flavors while adding the lemon which caused me to cut back a bit on the lemon. When using this for pasta, I suggest adding a little pasta water when blending with the pasta to loosen up the sauce a bit. My beloved (the best cook I know)- inhaled this and commented several times how good it was. A keeper!
kkeslin
Chicago, IL
5/11/2014
