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Classic Creamy Pesto Sauce Recipe

  • EspaƱol
Portions: 4 servings

Calories: 539kcal

The beauty of this creamy pesto sauce recipe is that it can be used in many different ways. For example, it can be used as a spicy dip with crackers or on pasta for an easy dinner. Genovese pesto is a delicious sauce that can be used in a variety of dishes, with all fresh ingredients and flavors.

Why I ā¤ļø it • Recipe • Ingredients • Video • Preparation

Creamy pesto sauce.

Creamy pesto sauce.

Why I ā¤ļø it

Fresh homemade pesto is one of my favorite foods. It's incredible how something so simple can have such complex flavors. This lovely Italian sauce with simple ingredients tastes rich, light, and fresh. All at the same time.

So I made a couple of jars of this creamy pesto sauce, and I tried it on everything, from pasta to bruschetta. And to please my insatiable taste for the green, with zucchini "fettuccini", all raw, and oh-so good!

Genovese creamy pesto sauce recipe

This free recipe contains Amazon affiliate links, and I receive a small commission when you purchase, at no cost to you. Thank you!

Fresh basil and a handful of strong-flavored ingredients produce this delicious classic creamy pesto sauce recipe that can be used in a variety of dishes.

Course: Dinner, Lunch
Inspiration: Italian
Category: creamy pesto pasta sauce recipe, pesto genovese, recipe for creamy pesto sauce
Author: Clara Gonzalez

Prep Time10 mins
Total Time10 mins

Utensils and tools

  • Food processor
Genovese creamy pesto sauce.
Genovese creamy pesto sauce.

Ingredients

  • 4 cups of fresh basil leaves, rinsed
  • ā…“ cup of pine nuts
  • ½ cup of Pecorino cheese (in small crumbs)
  • ½ cup of Parmesan cheese (in small crumbs)
  • ¾ cup of olive oil
  • 3 garlic cloves
  • 2 teaspoons of sea salt

Video

Preparation

Before starting, please make sure you have all the ingredients and utensils ready.

Step 1: Mixing the ingredients

Blending pesto sauce.
Blending pesto sauce.

Mix all the ingredients in the food processor and pulse until everything is finely minced.

Step 2: Serving and storing

Pesto sauce in mason jar.
Pesto sauce in mason jar.

If you are not using it freshly-made, you can refrigerate it for up to two days.

Top tips

  • To deepen the pesto taste, you can lightly toast the pine nuts in a large skillet over medium heat, stirring until they start to get a light golden color. Remove immediately and let them cool on a plate before blending the sauce.
  • To store, place in a mason jar or glass airtight container and refrigerate. It lasts for up to 2 days in the fridge.
Ingredients for creamy pesto sauce.
Ingredients for creamy pesto sauce.

Serving suggestions

Creamy pesto pasta recipe: In a pasta pot, boil the pasta al dente in salted water, following the instructions on the package. Drain the water (save a cup), and while still steaming hot, stir in the pesto. You may add some tablespoons of the boiling water to make it more creamy.

Gluten-free zucchini noodles: For a keto-friendly, gluten-free basil pesto dish, you can use zoodles (zucchini noodles). Check this zoodles recipe to see how I make them.

Appetizer dip: You can also serve this recipe as a dip for appetizers, great with these crispy broasted potatoes.

Variations

Some non-traditional versions substitute other nuts (like pistachios, almonds, and walnuts) for pine nuts

Nutritional information

Serves: approx. 1 ½ cup - Calories: 539kcal - Carbohydrates: 3g - Protein: 10gFat: 55g - Saturated Fat: 10g - Polyunsaturated Fat: 8g  - Monounsaturated Fat: 33g - Cholesterol: 26mg - Sodium: 1465mg - Potassium: 168mg - Fiber: 0gSugar: 0g - Vitamin A: 1370IU - Vitamin C: 5mg - Calcium: 313mg - Iron: 1.8mg

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    Creamy Mashed Potatoes with Sour Cream
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    Cream of Carrot Soup, Vegan and Easy
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    How to Cook Brown Rice

See more: condiment recipes pasta recipes dinner recipes

FAQs

What is pesto cream sauce made of?

Classic Genovese pesto is made of basil, garlic, olive oil, pine nuts, and pecorino or parmesan cheese.Ā 

What do I do if I put too much garlic in my pesto?

If you accidentally added too much garlic or find the garlic flavor overpowering, you can blend a handful of basil, pine nuts, and cheese and add to the pesto to lower the garlic content.

Is pesto sauce already cooked?

Homemade pesto sauce is used raw. Canned or jar pesto is typically pasteurized.

Should you put pasta water in pesto?

If you find the pasta too dry once you mix it with the pesto, you can add a few tablespoons of pasta water to make it looser and more creamy.

Print card

This is just a printer-friendly summary; some useful details are found in the recipe above.

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How to make creamy pesto sauce

Ingredients

  • 4 cups of fresh basil leaves
  • ā…“ cup of pine nuts
  • ½ cup of Pecorino cheese grated Ā (in small crumbs)
  • ½ cup of Parmesan cheese grated Ā (in small crumbs)
  • ¾ cup of olive oil
  • 3 garlic cloves
  • 2 teaspoon of sea salt

Instructions

Step 1: Mixing the ingredients

  • Mix all the ingredients in the food processor and pulse until everything is finely minced.

Step 2: Serving and storing

  • If you are not using fresh you can refrigerate up to two days.

Notes

You can also use Parmesan cheese in place of pecorino.
To serve with pasta, boil pasta al dente following the instructions in the package. Drain pasta and mix with pesto. Do not cook the pesto.

Nutrition

Calories: 539kcal

Published by Tia Clara - Sep 14, 2012

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  1. Darlene

    October 03, 2015 at 3:54 pm

    How do I measure 1 Cup of Basil Leaves. I have a measuring cup, but it's confusing. With solids, such as salt, pancake mix..etc is easy because all I have to do is make sure it's at the line marked 1 Cup, but how does this work for anything other than liquids and solids?

    Reply
    • Tia Clara

      October 16, 2015 at 11:04 am

      You pack the cup with the leaves.

      Reply
  2. HAYDEE

    December 08, 2012 at 11:16 pm

    RECETAS MUY BUENAS.

    Reply
  3. Marge

    September 17, 2012 at 9:22 am

    5 stars
    Thanks so much for the recipe!

    Reply
  4. denys

    September 14, 2012 at 7:57 pm

    5 stars
    I have always wanted a pesto recipe!! Thanks for sharing:-)

    Reply
    • Tia Clara

      September 15, 2012 at 11:09 am

      Glad to hear that.

      Reply
  5. Kankana

    September 14, 2012 at 2:33 pm

    Presto is my absolute fav sauce and I always make a lot and freeze and keep using as and when I need. Makes life easy šŸ™‚

    Reply
    • Tia Clara

      September 15, 2012 at 11:09 am

      It makes the two of us. I could have pesto in everything.

      Reply

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Hi, I'm TĆ­a Clara! I have been a recipe developer, and recipe writer for 20+ years, and here I share my easy recipes you'll love.

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