Walnut Pesto

This Walnut Pesto recipe is bright, flavorful and so fresh! Made with just 5 ingredients including fresh basil, parmesan, garlic, and walnuts, in just 10 minutes this simple sauce is quick, easy, and delicious.  Serve this with Pesto Salmon, Caprese Pasta Salad, or Pesto Tortellini Salad.

Love Homemade Pesto? Also, try my 7 Homemade Pesto Recipes including Spinach Pesto and Sun Dried Tomato Pesto.

Walnut Pesto recipe

This Walnut Pesto recipe is a fun twist on classic Italian pesto sauce.  This recipe swaps out pricey pine nuts for flavorful and heart-healthy walnuts.  Homemade pesto is truly a flavorful treat!  With fresh basil, parmesan, garlic, and olive oil, it's a flavor explosion that goes great with so many dishes including fish, pasta, pasta salad, pizza, and more.  Sure you can buy pesto sauce, but nothing compares to the fresh and vibrant flavors of making your own.

Flavorful pesto is best made in the summer when fresh basil is fresh and plentiful, but you can make this dish anytime to brighten up a winter day with a taste of summer. This recipe is surprisingly simple to make at home with as little as 5 ingredients and 10 minutes in a food processor and you can have this gorgeous sauce to enjoy with so many dishes.

This pesto is vegetarian and gluten-free and I include an option to make it vegan and dairy-free below.

Can I substitute walnuts for pine nuts in pesto?

Yes, you can! It's an easy, healthy, and budget-friendly swap.  Pine nuts are classically used in pesto, but they can be close to $20 a bag.  You might be surprised to know that other nuts make a great substitute if you don't want to splurge.   You can make Homemade Almond Pesto or now my fresh Walnut Pesto.  Homemade pesto comes in many forms, and honestly, you can't go wrong with any of them.

Why You'll Love this Walnut Pesto recipe...

• This Walnut Pesto recipe is so tasty and versatile!  It's a true flavor explosion.
• It's easy to prepare in a food processor in less than 10 minutes.
• It's only FIVE ingredients.
• It's the perfect use for those basil plants.
• You can make a big batch and freeze some for later if you happen to have a bunch of basil.
• There are so many ways to use fresh pesto!
• This is a basic recipe that you can customize and make your own.  See some of my ideas below.

Ingredients:

Here's an overview of what you'll need to make this Walnut Pesto recipe, but keep scrolling for the full recipe amounts.

• Basil: You'll need fresh basil leaves to make the pesto.  It's the base of the sauce and where all the flavor comes from.  Use bright green leaves that are free of blemishes.  The recipe calls for packed leaves which means you push them down into the measuring cup to make sure you get a full two cups.  You'll also want to rinse and dry the basil to make sure you aren't making your pesto with dirt.  Fresh herbs make all the difference.
• Walnuts: Fresh walnuts are best for this recipe.  You can use whole or pieces since they are getting chopped up anyway.  The walnut flavor is subtle and you don't taste much of a difference between them and the traditionally used pine nuts.  Walnuts are actually super healthy too and a great source of healthy fats like monounsaturated fat and polyunsaturated fat.
• Garlic: Go for the good stuff here! Use a real fresh garlic bulb.  You need two garlic cloves (the smaller part inside of the bulb) peeled.  You can pop them in the food processor whole and let the machine do the work of chopping them up.
• Parmesan Cheese: I like to use freshly shaved or grated parmesan cheese for the most flavor.  You can also use a blend of pecorino romano. You can make this vegan or dairy-free by substituting nutritional yeast for the parmesan or simply leaving it out.
• Olive Oil: This dish really tastes best when using nice, high-quality ingredients.  Use your higher-end finishing extra virgin olive oil for this for the best results.  I like this one.
• Salt: I salt to taste but don't add pepper to my pesto.

Instructions:

This is an overview of the instructions to make this Basil Walnut Pesto recipe, but the full detailed printable recipe is below in the recipe card.

1. To make the pesto, get out your food processor.  Add the fresh basil, peeled garlic cloves, walnuts, parmesan cheese, and olive oil to the food processor.  If you don't have a food processor, you could also use a high-speed blender.
2. Start with a few pulses and then process the basil pesto for several minutes until the pesto is well combined. Occasionally stop the processor and scrape the sides down to make sure it's all mixed in.  Be patient until you get the right pesto consistency, but don't over-blend because it could turn bitter. 
3. Add salt to taste.
4. Serve immediately or store in an airtight container in the fridge until ready to use.

Variations

I love this Walnut Pesto recipe as written, but here are some fun variations.

• Make it Vegan Walnut Pesto: You can easily make this recipe vegan pesto or dairy-free pesto by substituting nutritional yeast for parmesan.  You can also just leave it out.
• Add Citrus: Brighten up the pesto by adding some freshly squeezed lemon juice or lemon zest.
• Add Greens: Short on fresh basil? Use fresh spinach, kale, or arugula leaves for up to half of the basil.

FAQ

Storage & Leftovers

Leftover pesto can be kept in an airtight container in the fridge for up to five days.  If desired, you can put a thin layer of olive oil on top of the pesto to help prevent oxidizing.

Freezing

Freezing leftover basil is a great option and can be a fabulous way to preserve fresh basil.  After making the pesto, put it in ice cube trays and freeze.  Once the pesto is frozen, remove the cubes from the trays and store them in a freezer bag or airtight container.  When you need pesto, just pop out one cube and use it.  You can keep frozen pesto for up to three months.

What is walnut pesto made of?

Walnut Pesto is made with all of the ingredients in standard pesto like basil, garlic, parmesan cheese, and olive oil.  It just substitutes walnuts for pine nuts.

Why did my pesto turn out bitter?

Bitter pesto is caused by many reasons including using not fresh ingredients and overprocessing your pesto in the food processor.  For the best pesto make sure to use fresh ingredients and stop your food processor as soon as your pesto gets to the right consistency.  Don't just keep running it.

How long does homemade pesto last?

If kept in an airtight container in the fridge you can keep it for up to 5 days.  If you are looking to keep your pesto for longer, it's best to freeze it.

This Walnut Pesto recipe is so Tasty!

This Walnut Pesto recipe is so tasty, unique, and fun.  Once you make homemade pesto sauce, you'll have a hard time enjoying prepared pesto because the flavor is so much better.  It's also super versatile and goes with so many things.  You can simply add it to pasta, put it in a sandwich, add it to eggs, or even add it to pizza.  Anywhere a basil flavor would be good, this pesto elevates your meal.  It's also kid-friendly and my boys gobbled this up with pasta and in a quesadilla.

Make a simple Walnut Pesto Pasta by tossing one recipe of this with one box of cooked pasta.  Keep it plain or add a protein like chicken or shrimp.

Here are a few more ideas on how to serve it.  As always, I hope you enjoy this recipe as much as my family did!

Serve it With:

• Easy Lemon Pesto Salmon
• 4 Ingredient Caprese Pasta Salad
• Pesto Tortellini Salad with Asparagus
• Healthy Creamy Pesto Pasta
• Pesto Zoodles
• Pesto Quinoa with Shrimp

More Pesto Recipes to Try:

• 6 Fresh & Tasty Homemade Pesto Recipes
• Homemade Cashew Pesto
• Homemade Almond Pesto
• Spinach Pesto
• Cilantro Pesto
• Homemade Sun Dried Tomato Pesto

If you make this Walnut Pesto Recipe, I’d love to hear what you think! Leave a comment and a star rating ★ below. Make sure to follow me on Instagram, Pinterest, and Facebook too!

Walnut Pesto

Julie Wunder

This Walnut Pesto recipe is bright, flavorful and so fresh! Made with just 5 ingredients including fresh basil, parmesan, garlic, and walnuts, in just 10 minutes this simple sauce is quick, easy, and delicious. 

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 10 minutes mins

Total Time 10 minutes mins

Course Dinner

Cuisine American, Italian

Servings 8

Calories 178 kcal

Ingredients

  

1x2x3x

• 2 cups fresh basil
• ⅓ cup walnuts
• ½ cup parmesan cheese, shredded
• 2 garlic cloves, peeled
• ½ cup olive oil
• salt to taste

Instructions

 

• Add the basil, peeled garlic cloves, walnuts, parmesan cheese, and olive oil to the food processor.
  
• Blend for several minutes until the pesto is well combined. Occasionally stop the processor and scrape the sides down to make sure it's all mixed in.
  
• Add salt to taste.
• Serve immediately or store in an airtight container in the fridge until ready to use.

Notes

Storage & Leftovers

Leftover pesto can be kept in an airtight container in the fridge for up to five days.

Freezing

After making the pesto, put it in ice cube trays and freeze.  Once the pesto is frozen, remove the cubes from the trays and store them in a freezer bag or airtight container.  When you need pesto, just pop out one cube and use it.  You can keep frozen pesto for up to three months.

Nutrition

Calories: 178kcalCarbohydrates: 1gProtein: 3gFat: 18gSaturated Fat: 3gPolyunsaturated Fat: 4gMonounsaturated Fat: 11gCholesterol: 4mgSodium: 101mgPotassium: 48mgFiber: 0.4gSugar: 0.2gVitamin A: 366IUVitamin C: 1mgCalcium: 91mgIron: 0.5mg

Keyword Walnut Pesto recipe

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