Nut Free Pesto Recipe
This post contains affiliate links. Read our disclosure policy.
This Nut Free Pesto Recipe is absolutely delicious! A 5 Ingredient Basil Pesto without Nuts that is perfect on pasta – everyone will love it!
When it comes to tomato sauce, chicken marinades, and healthy salad dressings, buying the premade ones from the store may be very convenient, but they will just never be as flavorful as the homemade version, which is why I just had to share our favorite easy Pesto without Nuts recipe!
Pesto is a fresh, delicious, and versatile sauce that can be served hot or cold and can be used in so many ways (our favorite ways are below if you need some inspiration).
If you love bright flavors and extremely easy recipes, you need to give this nut free pesto sauce a try (it’s not just for people with nut allergies)! It comes together in minutes, with just 5 fresh ingredients; put everything in a food processor and blend… really, that’s it!!
Liz’s tips for pesto without nuts
- Use fresh basil leaves: Don’t use dried basil in this recipe! It won’t work and will taste awful.
- If using this pesto as a chicken marinade, marinate for at least 30 minutes. This is the perfect amount of time for the chicken to soak up the flavor.
Ingredients
Substitutions
Olive Oil: You can substitute avocado oil for olive oil but we don’t recommend it.
Basil: I haven’t tried this recipe with any other herbs, but I think parsley would work.
Parmesan: We don’t recommend substituting parmesan cheese.
How to Make Pesto Without Pine Nuts
- In a small blender or food processor combine all ingredients. Blend until smooth.
- Serve over your favorite pasta and enjoy
Serving Suggestions
There are countless ways to use pesto. Here are some of our favorites:
- on your favorite pasta (it would be delicious on ricotta cavatelli)
- in our Pesto Chicken Zucchini Noodles, Pesto Chicken Orzo, or Chicken Pesto Pasta
- in a pasta salad: like Greek Chicken Pasta Salad or Healthy Pasta Salad
- as pizza sauce, instead of marinara. It would be delicious on our Keto Pizza!
- on top of baked boneless chicken breast or as marinade for salmon (or try one of these healthy salmon marinades)
- drizzle on bruschetta on a crostini
- as a marinade for grilled veggies in foil or for chicken
- as a dip for veggies
Storage
Refrigerator: Any leftover pesto will last in the refrigerator for up to 4 days in an airtight container.
Can you freeze pesto?: You can freeze this recipe for up to 3 months. We like these containers for freezing !
You could also store it in an ice cube tray in the freezer.
Other healthy pasta recipes:
Looking for other easy meals? Check out these 40+ Healthy Easy Dinner Recipes. Click here to grab our free healthy 30 minute dinners cookbook.
Nut Free Pesto
Ingredients
- 2 cups fresh basil leaves packed
- ½ cup olive oil
- ⅓ cup grated parmesan cheese
- 2 cloves garlic about 1 tablespoon
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
Instructions
- In a small blender or food processor combine all ingredients.
- Blend until smooth.
- Serve over your favorite pasta and enjoy
Video
I cook shell noodle to add pesto creamy sauce from store but would like to make homemade pesto sauce someday. Pesto creamy taste so delicate and thick creamy. It goes well with turkey meatballs that I ate for dinner today.
Instead of fresh basil leaves could you use the basil in tubes? I use that in place of the leaves a lot of times. Hard to keep fresh basil on hand for 2 people.
I would not do that. The basil in the tub has other ingredients and could mess with the texture and taste of the pesto. You need to use fresh basil for this 🙂 It’s worth buying!