Macadamia Free Basil-Pesto Endive Salad
Bright, bitter endive leaves act as natural little scoops here, making this salad as fun to eat as it is beautiful to look at. The homemade pesto is the real star — blitzed together with fresh basil, garlic, lemon juice, and good olive oil, it comes out vivid green and intensely fragrant without any nuts in the mix whatsoever. Traditional pesto often calls for pine nuts or, in some variations, macadamia nuts, so making it from scratch this way means you stay in complete control of every ingredient. Each endive leaf gets a light smear of that herby pesto, then a scatter of paper-thin radishes, fresh parsley, and a hit of lemon zest for brightness. A final pinch of flaky sea salt ties everything together in the most satisfying way. It's elegant enough for a dinner party starter but genuinely simple to pull off on any weeknight.
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Learn more →Ingredients
4 servings
For the pesto
- 2 oz fresh basil leaves (about 2 packed cups)
- ⅓ cup extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 clove garlic, peeled
- 2 tbsp fresh lemon juice
- ¼ tsp fine sea salt
For the salad
- 3 medium heads belgian endive (about 12 oz total)
- 4 radishes, thinly sliced
- ¼ cup fresh flat-leaf parsley leaves
- 1 tsp lemon zest
- flaky sea salt, to taste
Instructions
- 1
Combine the basil leaves, garlic, lemon juice, and fine sea salt in a food processor. Pulse 6–8 times until the basil is roughly chopped and the garlic is minced.
- 2
With the processor running, stream in the olive oil in a slow, steady pour until the pesto is smooth and bright green, about 20–30 seconds. Taste and adjust salt or lemon juice as needed.
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