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Homemade Fresh Basil Pesto Without Cheese | ![]() |
Fresh & Seasonal, a Summer Classic. Just Five Ingredients and Three Easy-to-Remember Techniques. Dairy Free. Nut Free (if using sunflower seeds, my favorite). Gluten Free. Weeknight Easy, Weekend Special. Low Carb. Naturally Gluten Free. Not just vegan, Vegan Done Real. Great for Meal Prep. Rave Reviews. So Good!

that I'm adding it to a special collection of easy summer recipes
published every summer since 2009.
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COMPLIMENTS!
- "... it is so good! ... What a great recipe!" ~ Charlie
- "You're a genius! The fresh pesto, no cheese, is so so delicious!" ~ Jan
- What're you waiting for?!
Recipe Overview: Homemade Fresh Basil Pesto Without Cheese
- Bright, bold and gloriously green — this Homemade Fresh Basil pesto skips the cheese but keeps all the flavor. It’s herb-packed, garlicky and silky with good olive oil, perfect for anyone avoiding dairy or just craving a lighter twist.
- When to Serve = Bright enough for drizzling over grilled vegetables, bold enough to toss with pasta or even, surprise, cooked rice. Totally spoon-worthy straight from the jar.
- Diet Needs & Choices = Vegan. Gluten Free. Dairy Free. Egg Free. Nut Free with Sunflower Seeds or Pint Nuts.
- Distinctive Ingredients = Basil Leaves + Garlic + Olive Oil
- Short Ingredient List = all the above + salt + toasted walnuts, almonds, sunflower seeds or the more traditional pine nuts
- Kitchen Tools = A food processor is a huge help here.
- Hands-On Time = So quick, allow about 10 minutes, start to finish, no extra time needed for flavors to meld or anything.
- Tasting with our Eyes = So pretty, summer pesto!
- Texture = Texture is important here, it's why I use a food processor to process the garlic and salt together by themselves first; the salt gives the blade something to grab onto besides that slippery garlic. And I don't know about you, but I just don't have the patience to hand chop basil into the tiny bits needed for pesto.
- Techniques = But! Stir in the olive oil by hand, this avoids the slight bitterness that can occur when the heat from the food processor's blades hits basil leaves.
- Taste = Basil-y. Garlicky. Olive Oil-y.
- Shop Your Pantry = This is a pantry-friendly and budget-friendly recipe, especially for those of us who grow basil in our gardens. Really! It needs to be cut back by mid June! (If you're thinking about growing fresh herbs, definitely check out my personal how-to. You may Never Buy Fresh Herbs Again!)
- Makes = about 3/4 cup but easily scaled up or down, according to your needs.
- Small Households = This recipe works especially well for those Cooking for One or Two.
- So good! I hope you love it!
- Can't find pretty basil? Try Chimichurri, it's made with fresh parsley.
- Not quite what you're looking for? Check out my other recipes for what I call "Little Extras That Make All the Difference".
Insider Tips for Perfect Fresh-Basil Pesto
So these are my three simple tips for making basil pesto at home. No surprise, I'm kinda known for challenging the conventional wisdom, in the kitchen and otherwise.
- TO AVOID BITTERNESS To avoid the bitterness that can ruin pesto, I start off the pesto in the food processor but then finish it by hand, just a quick stir, really. Why finish the pesto by hand? Because there's a chemical reaction between good olive oil and the "heat" of the food processor's blades that causes a bitter taste.
- And no, I didn't figure that out myself, America's Test Kitchen did – although I do "dream" about ATK ideas, thanks to falling asleep listening to the weekly podcast. (Modern Life: some times I must listen to the same podcast five or six times to get all the way through!)
- TO AVOID MUDDINESS This one may be more controversial because, yeah, I suppose, pesto isn't really pesto unless it contains some cheese, usually freshly grated Parmesan. But to my taste, cheese muddies basil's quintessential summer freshness and fragrance. Without cheese, the basil in Homemade Basil Pesto stays right out in front, unveiled by dusky dairy. So me? I leave it out. That means that it's also vegan. Pesto that's 100% plant-based is an extra upside.
- TO SAVE SOME MONEY Skip the pine nuts! Yes, pine nuts are traditional in pesto. But three things work against them. First, pine nuts aren't always easy to find. But once you do, you can count on pine nuts being expensive and then, once you bring them home but don't use them right away, they turn rancid way too quickly. So I've learned to substitute less-expensive, shelf-stable nuts (either walnuts or almonds) or my favorite, still less-expensive sunflower seeds. No one will notice, let alone complain!
How To Use Homemade Basil Pesto
- Salmon with Pesto Zucchini Noodles & Warm Tomatoes
- Summer's Tomato Soup from Kitchen Parade
- Warm Caprese Bites
- Cheesy Cauliflower Casserole with Caprese Tomatoes from A Veggie Venture, my food blog about vegetables
- And you? What do you make with homemade pesto?
But Maybe You'd Like to Use Up a Big Container of Pesto?
On occasion, I bring home a large container of store-bought pesto from Sam's Club. Honestly? Prepared pesto is pretty good, not as good as fresh, of course, but really good. But it does take some doing to use it up. Here are my two favorite ways.
- Easy Pesto Pasta Salad, a side dish
- Pesto Pasta Primavera, a Quick Supper
Bookmark! PIN! Share!
How do you save and share favorite recipes? recipes that fit your personal cooking style? a particular recipe your mom or daughter or best friend would just love? If this recipe inspires you, please do save and share! I'd be honored ...
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HOMEMADE BASIL PESTO WITHOUT CHEESE
Time to table: 10 minutes
Makes about 3/4 cup
-
JUST FIVE INGREDIENTS
- 1 tablespoon fresh garlic
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt (assumes Morton's kosher salt)
- 2 cups packed (60g) sweet basil
- 1/4 cup (30g) toasted walnuts, almonds, sunflower seeds or the more traditional pine nuts (see ALANNA's TIPS)
- 1/2 cup good olive oil
START WITH FOOD PROCESSOR
In a food processor, pulse the garlic and salt until the garlic is finely minced, scraping the bowl's side a time or two if needed.
Add the basil and pine nuts, pulse until both are in tiny still-distinguishable bits but not mushy.
BUT FINISH BY HAND
Transfer the mixture to a bowl and stir in the olive oil.
WHEN TO SERVE Can be made a day or two ahead of time but is really best when completely fresh. Once refrigerated, the oil and cheese will thicken so be sure to return the pesto to room temperature before using.






FOR MORE INFO If you "skipped straight to the recipe," please scroll back to the top of this page for ingredient information, ingredient substitutions, tips and more.


https://www.kitchenparade.com/2015/07/homemade-basil-pesto.html
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If you like Kitchen Parade's recipes, you'll love A Veggie Venture, my food blog about vegetables with more from-scratch recipes using whole, healthful ingredients, home to the famous Alphabet of Vegetables and vegetables in every course, seasonal to staples, savory to sweet, salads to sides, soups to supper, simple to special.
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More Little Extras Especially for Summer
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- ANOTHER TAKE Green Mayonnaise A whole new way to think of mayonnaise. (PIN This)
- THE RECIPE Chimichurri How to make chimichurri, the Argentinian parsley sauce. (PIN This)
- ANOTHER TAKE Green Chile Sauce (Salsa Verde) New Mexico-style salsa verde. (PIN This)
- THE RECIPE Comeback Sauce The Southern staple, so good, you'll "come back" for more. (PIN This)
- ANOTHER TAKE Famous Mustard Sauce (Carolina BBQ Mustard Sauce) A tiny-bit spicy and a tiny-bit sweet and totally addictive.
© Copyright Kitchen Parade
2015, 2019, 2020 (repub) & 2025
Thank you for your "Quick Tip" for fresh pesto without parmesan. Jan made it yesterday and it is so good! We had it on a pasta dish last night, and for lunch today on a real salad caprese, with regular size tomatoes and mozzarella and lettuce. And there is still some left for the remaining angel-hair pasta from last night. What a great recipe!
ReplyDeleteYou're a genius! The fresh pesto, no cheese, is so so delicious! Thank you!
ReplyDeleteGreat recipe, i love pesto, never thought to make my own.
ReplyDeleteSimon