Nitrate & Nitrite Free Basil & Olive Pesto
Bright, herby, and packed with Mediterranean flavor, this pesto is the kind of condiment that makes everything it touches taste better. Traditional pesto recipes can be a sneaky source of concern for anyone avoiding cured or processed ingredients, but this one keeps things completely clean ā just fresh basil, briny green olives, garlic, lemon, and good olive oil. The olives do something genuinely clever here, standing in for the usual pine nuts and parmesan while adding a savory, salty depth that feels rich without relying on any processed additions. A slow drizzle of extra-virgin olive oil through the food processor brings it all together into a silky, textured sauce with just enough body to cling to pasta, spread over crusty bread, or dollop onto roasted vegetables. The optional parsley adds a subtle earthiness if you want to round out the flavor even further. Store it in a sealed jar in the fridge and you've got a versatile, whole-ingredient sauce ready to elevate weeknight meals all week long.
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Learn more āIngredients
6 servings
- 2 cups fresh basil leaves, packed
- ā cup pitted green olives
- 2 cloves garlic, peeled
- 1 tbsp fresh lemon juice
- Ā½ tsp lemon zest
- Ā½ tsp fine sea salt, plus more to taste
- Ā½ cup extra-virgin olive oil
- 1ā2 tbsp fresh parsley leaves (optional)
Instructions
- 1
Combine the basil leaves, green olives, garlic, lemon juice, lemon zest, and salt in the bowl of a food processor. Pulse 8ā10 times until the mixture is coarsely chopped and the garlic is broken down.
- 2
With the processor running, pour the olive oil in a slow, steady stream through the feed tube, processing until the pesto is smooth with a few flecks of texture remaining ā about 20ā30 seconds. Stop and scrape down the sides with a rubber spatula, then pulse once or twice more to incorporate.
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