Making and freezing basil pesto in a great way to preserve the fresh flavors of summer. Healthy and versatile – pesto is perfect brushed on grilled meats, tossed with steamed veggies or stirred into soup.
Homemade basil pesto is one of my favorite recipes to prepare in bulk during the summer. It takes just minutes to prepare, is extremely versatile and is ideal for freezing. Since basil can be pricey during cooler months of the year, having frozen pesto on hand in the freezer is like having money in the bank.
Chances are, you are either growing basil in your backyard or live near a farmer who is selling it for pennies. Making and freezing pesto is the perfect use for an abundance of fragrant fresh herbs.
For a simple guide on washing and storing dark leafy greens (including basil!) be sure to check out my tips and video tutorial. It’s the best way to make fresh greens such as romaine, kale or Swiss chard last longer in the fridge.
If you don’t have every ingredient listed, get creative, and use what you have on hand with this easy swap-out guide:
- Basil can be replaced spinach, parsley, arugula or cilantro.
- Parmesan can be replaced with pecorino, romano, or Grana Padano cheese.
- Pine nuts can be replaced with walnuts, pistachios, or cashews.
Fresh lemon juice and zest will brighten up the flavor and adds a great acidic balance to the olive oil, cheese, and nuts. Toasting the pine nuts takes less than 10 minutes and provides a deep, rich flavor that you simply don’t get with raw pine nuts.
Pesto is packed with health benefits including heart-healthy monounsaturated fatty acids from the olive oil, iron from the leafy greens, and vitamin C from the lemon. Added bonus? Iron helps boost the absorption of vitamin c so consuming them together is a win-win.
Frequently Asked Questions:
Pesto keeps for 5-7 days in the refrigerator
To freeze, pour the pesto into an ice cube tray and place in the freezer for 2 hours. Remove from frozen pesto cubes and store them in a resealable plastic bag until future use.
3 Months
Olive oil prevents oxidation and slows the pesto from turning brown. I’ve never tried not using olive oil
📖 Recipe
How To Make And Freeze Basil Pesto
Equipment
- Food Processor
Ingredients
- 4 cups fresh basil
- 1 cup grated parmesan
- ½ cup pine nuts toasted
- 3 cloves garlic
- 1 lemon juice and zest of
- 1 cup olive oil
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- To toast pine nuts, place on a baking sheet in an even layer and bake at 350 for 6-7 minutes until browned.
- In a large food processor, pulse together basil, parmesan, pine nuts, garlic, lemon juice and zest.
- Slowly drizzle in the olive oil and puree until smooth. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
Nutrition
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Louise
Hi Liz, I saw where one of your commenters asked if you have to use olive oil in your pesto recipe. I have made it using avocado oil and it’s a great substitute. I personally missed the flavor of the olive oil, but for those who don’t like olive oil, I think they will like the avocado oil version. I have also used macadamia nuts and they were also a great substitute for the pine nuts.
Liz DellaCroce
Oh that’s great to know! That sounds delicious!!!!! Thanks so much!
Art Vickers
You gave purpose to all the basil growing in the tomato planter. First time ever making pesto and your recipe (substituted roasted cashews for pine nuts) è delizioso. Many thanks!
Liz DellaCroce
Oh great!! So glad! Enjoy!
Janne Dean
Do you have to use the lemon for freezing, or can you omit?
Liz DellaCroce
You can skip it!
Adam
This was my first time making basil pesto, and it was great! I did save pine nuts for garnish, and think I will also garnish with a touch of lemon zest when I have a fresh lemon in the fridge. Basil plant going crazy, another batch of leaves washed and spun to be processed tomorrow. Thank you for the recipe.
Liz DellaCroce
I’m so glad you enjoyed it Adam!
Deena Johnson
I heard freezing the garlic can make the pesto bitter. Can you add garlic at time f use?
Liz DellaCroce
Yes absolutely!!! Just grate it first.
Betsey Lefthand
Simply wanna remark that you have a very nice site, I enjoy the pattern it really stands out.
Liz DellaCroce
Thank you so much!!
Eileen Pedersen
Is there any way you could be more specific on the lemon juice and zest, they can vary in size so much? Right now I have a huge lemon, so I’m sure I don’t want to use the whole thing, but I’m not sure how much is the right amount…
Liz DellaCroce
1/4 cup lemon juice and 1 teaspoon zest. :)
Conni
I use almonds & pre-grind them in a coffee bean grinder.
I pour the pesto into ziplock freezer bags, lay them flat on a cookie sheet to freeze, then break off what I need &?reseal. Great space saver for the freezer & has lasted me all year.
Liz DellaCroce
Sounds great!!!!
Mattie Zedlitz
Delicious recipe but I went a little lighter on the lemon juice. I don’t have ice trays.. can I put it in mini muffin tin?
Liz DellaCroce
Great idea!
Kathy Ahern
If frozen in an ice cube tray how much will it be defrosted?
Liz DellaCroce
Just 30 minutes I’d say!
Nathalie
Hi Liz! Thank you for this delicious recipe. I was calculating the pesto calories however as per my calculation 2 tbsp has 157 calories, 1.8 g carbs, 16.2 g fat (since you added 1 cup olive oil) and 2.3 g prot… correct me if I am wrong :) thanks again!
Liz DellaCroce
Ok I just re-did the calculations and I get 119 per two table spoons!
MAJ
You say it is 169 calories per serve but don’t say how many servings your recipe makes.
Liz DellaCroce
Just revised the nutrition facts to include serving size!! It’s grately lower now. :)
Alena
If substituting the pine nuts for walnuts/cashews/pistachios:
1) do I still toast them? How long and at what temperature?
2)can I use a mix of the three kinds of nuts or should I stick with all of one kind?
Thank you!
Liz DellaCroce
Yes I would toast them – 7-9 minutes or until brown (you can smell them when they’re done!) You can use three that’s fine!
Marlene Denton
The whole lemon and zest was too much lemon for me so I added more garlic and pine nuts. Seemed to even it out a bit. Just putt in the freezer!
Liz DellaCroce
Sounds good!!
Marlene Denton
Made pumpkin ravioli with the pesto last night!! Delish!!!
Liz DellaCroce
Sounds incredible!!
Jenn
I love Pesto, however my daughter has a nut allergy. Do you have any suggestions other than the ones you posted for swapping them out for something else?
Liz DellaCroce
I bet it would be delicious if you leave out the nuts!
A
Pumpkin or Sunflower seeds?
Liz DellaCroce
I have never used either actually – only pine nuts or walnuts!
Tanya
I’ve made it with pecans it’s awesome:)
Liz DellaCroce
What a great idea!
Don
I use roasted drained chickpeas because of my children’s nut allergy.
Liz DellaCroce
Great idea!
Angela
Great recipe but it is taking more then 2 hours to freeze. It may take longer to freeze then 2 hours. It tastes good,also I did not use the lemon juice or Zest it still turned out great. Al if you do not have a food processor you will need one a blender will not work. Love this it is worth all the work.
Liz DellaCroce
Yes I agree it is worth the work! So glad you love it!
LouAnn
I try not to use oil or consume oil of any kind in my food. Do I HAVE to use olive oil when making your pesto?
Liz DellaCroce
I’m not sure how you could make pesto without oil but if you try it please let me know!
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To make pesto w/o oil or cheese, for freezing: Just use the same proportions of fresh basil, garlic and lemon juice that you normally use for your pesto and pound, crush or blend in a food processor then freeze in half pint batches. When ready to use defrost, add cheese and oil and mix by hand and add to your recipe.
michelle
My daughter has a severe nut allergy. I’m growing fresh basil & wanting to make pesto. Anything I can use instead of pine nuts? Or just completely omit the nuts & hopefully still taste awesome? Thanks!
Liz DellaCroce
I’m pretty sure it would taste awesome without the nuts!! :)
Pat
Add 3 crushed cream crackers to give it some consistency
Liz DellaCroce
Interesting idea!
Laurie {Simply Scratch}
Made this and LOVE IT!! A total keeper! Thanks Liz!
Liz DellaCroce
Oh I’m so glad to hear that Laurie!!! Glad you enjoyed it!
Rachael {Simply Fresh Cooking}
I have to try this! :) Hope you’re well, Liz. xo
Kirsten@FarmFreshFeasts
Liz,
I’ve never thought to add lemon zest to my pesto–great idea. I make mine thicker (usually because I’ve got so many leaves vs cheese and nuts) and use a small disher or cookie scoop to freeze it on trays. The act of freezing bursts the cell walls, and the pesto is . . . well not runny, but let’s say liquid . . . when thawed. (I have a shortage of ice cube trays and don’t like to tie them up, so I tried it this way with success.)
Thanks!
Liz DellaCroce
I’m so glad you liked the lemon zest addition. I’m jealous of your abundance of basil!!
Jodi
I have never thought to freeze my pesto either! Also, due to a nut allergy in the fam, I use Pumpkin Seeds instead of Pine Nuts and it turns out great!
Liz DellaCroce
I love the pumpkin seed idea!! Need to try.
Alyssa (Everyday Maven)
I love Pesto and put it on everything this time of year – so much so that I rarely have any left to freeze!
Liz DellaCroce
Honestly, we are almost through our frozen stash!! Time to make more!!
Mackenzie {SusieFreakingHomemaker}
I LOVE freezing fresh herbs and busting them out in the winter!
Liz DellaCroce
Next I want to try freezing herbs in olive oil!! I don’t want summer flavors to end!
Rachel @ Baked by Rachel
Love this tip to freeze!
Liz DellaCroce
Thanks Rachel!! It’s so fun having little pesto cubes in the freezer. :)
Jessica@AKitchenAddiction
Love the idea of having pesto on hand during the winter by freezing it when ingredients are cheaper!
Liz DellaCroce
Me too!! I can’t stand buying $5 packets of basil in the winter. :)
Liz
Thank you, Liz for this recipe. It will come in handy this fall and winter.
Liz DellaCroce
My pleasure Liz! Have a great day!
Barbara | Creative Culinary
Exactly what I plan to do this weekend. Our basil is going to seed so fast I’ve been plucking it like crazy; now to do something with all of that amazing abundance!
I have been using toasted walnuts of late in pesto; as much as I love pine nuts; their $20/lb price tag needs some adjusting before it can regain it’s place as the favored kitchen nut!
Liz DellaCroce
I love the idea of toasting walnuts!! Pine nuts are so dang expensive but we buy them at Costco in bulk and freeze the bag. It lasts us about 3 months-6 months.
Laurie {SimplyScratch}
I was just staring at my basil plant thinking “I need to make some pesto!” and poof.. here it is :) Looks great and I WILL be freezing my pest in ice cube trays!
Liz DellaCroce
That’s awesome!! It’s a sign you need to make pesto!!
Cookin Canuck
It’s always wonderful to have summer-fresh pesto in the freezer during the long winter. Great post, Liz!
Liz DellaCroce
Thanks Dara! I agree. My goal is to freeze as much summer as I can before the baby arrives. :)
Shanna@ pineapple and coconut
I totally freeze pesto the same way!! This is how I made my kids baby food too. Ice cube trays are so versatile! ha ha. We have several basil plants growing in our backyard here in Vegas. My 5 year old will pick leaves and eat them like they are chips or something. Crazy kiddo
Liz DellaCroce
I love eating the leaves like chips too – hahah!!
Georgia @ The Comfort of Cooking
ALL of these years I’ve been making basil pesto and never considered freezing it! What a brilliant tip, Liz. This is so useful, especially since I can’t get enough of the stuff year-round and homemade tastes SO much better than store bought.
Liz DellaCroce
Yes freezing it is the best!!! So much tastier than those tiny bottles for $6 at the grocery store. :)
Christy@SweetandSavoring
I laughed when I saw the title- this post couldn’t be more timely! We have a ton of basil in our garden. I made sunflower seed pesto a few days ago, and just harvested a whole colander full of basil this afternoon. It’s so nice to know that the basil cubes will be patiently waiting for me in the freezer come December :)
Liz DellaCroce
I love the idea of sunflower seed pesto!! So smart!
Lauren @ Climbing Grier Mountain
And….bookmarked!! I totally need a reminder because when I stare at my tower-o-basil, I freak out and pee my pants. Can’t wait to get my pesto on!
Liz DellaCroce
I hope you made pesto instead of peeing your pants!
dixya| food, pleasure, and health
i am making a batch of pesto and this came on a right time. thank you :)
Putputt @ Putputt Eats
Omgosh, what a great trick! I would never have thought of doing this. Thank you for sharing!
Susan
Hi thx for the recipe. I actually made pea pesto in the past so for those with treenut or even seed allergies this might work as well. For the person that asked about minimizing the oil I have also used vegetable broth or believe it or not tofu to make it creamy
Liz DellaCroce
That’s a great idea!
Brenda @ a farmgirl's dabbles
I just made pesto last week and our youngest put it in trays for the freezer. Like you said, “money in the bank”!! Great post, Liz!
Liz DellaCroce
It really is money in the bank!!! Thanks friend. :)
EA-The Spicy Rd
Thanks for the reminder that I need to try this! I love, love, love pesto, but have never tried the freezer method. Now I just need to go load up on basil and other yummy greens :-)
Liz DellaCroce
Yes you must freeze it!! You’ll be so glad you did!!