Toasted Almond Pesto

I remember the first time I made pesto...it was during the summer a little over 10 years ago and my little brother and sister thought I was trying to poison them, lol.

"But...it's...GREEN!!" my sister screeched, she was the more vocal of the two,"Yuuuck! I don't eat green spaghetti!"

Meanwhile my brother threw a fit of vomit gestures and "eeews" as only a five year-old could. They refused to eat it, I guess green pasta really threw them a curveball.

Eventually realizing that I wouldn't be making anything else, they slowly gave in to their growling tummies and gingerly took little sniffs of the plate... sniffs turned into bites...and then finally...silence.

They were actually eating it! I was amazed!!

* * *
Pesto is one of the first pasta sauces I ever made from scratch. I was used to pasta sauce being white, red, or somewhere in between, but never green...so I could understand my little brother and sister's confusion a little, lol. And even though I'd seen pesto on plenty of cooking shows, it never interested me until someone actually urged me to taste it, then I was hooked.

Curious, I broke the silence to ask what they thought...they both basically replied, "It tastes good, but eeeeeeww, it's green!! Blech!"

They finished their plates, occasionally complaining that they were eating green pasta and how weird that was. When my mother finally came home, they exclaimed something to the tune of, "Mommy, were were so good! We ate our food, even though it was green!!!...Yuuuck!"

Satisfied that I had at least fulfilled my sisterly babysitting duties by ensuring my siblings didn't starve...I was content.

Although pine nuts are the more traditional ingredient for pesto, I rarely have them on hand, plus they're kind of expensive.

Enter the mighty almond: they're widely available, relatively inexpensive, healthy, and tasty...especially when toasted :) So using them in place of pine nuts was pretty much a no-brainer, though walnuts work pretty well too.
I also add a touch of fresh lemon juice to help the sauce retain its vibrant green color.

I really love when summer comes around and the basil is flavorful and abundant. It's pesto making season :o)

Toasted Almond Pesto
makes ~ 2 cups

4 cups basil leaves, packed
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
2-3 garlic cloves, chopped depending on your taste
1/2 cup grated Parmesan
1/2 teaspoon salt
juice of half a lemon
1/2 cup sliced almonds, toasted
salt & pepper


Wash and dry the basil leaves thoroughly. Prep the remaining ingredients.

Toasting the almonds:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
Spread the almonds out onto a baking tray and place in the oven for about 9 minutes. Turn the tray once so the almonds toast evenly. Set aside to cool.


Pulse the nuts, garlic and lemon juice together in your blender or food processor. Add the basil leaves and cheese, keep pulsing and tamping down the basil leaves until the sauce comes together.


Season with salt and pepper to taste.

So the hard part's done :o)
Pesto will last for a couple days in the refrigerator, and if you leave out cheese, you can freeze it in ice cube trays, transfer the cubes to a freezer bag, and just thaw as needed.

Here's how I served the pesto this time:

1 quantity Toasted Almond Pesto
16oz whole grain mini penne
1 package of ripe cherry tomatoes, quartered
extra grated parmesan
extra toasted almonds (optional)

Toss the hot pasta with pesto sauce until throughly coated. Top with fresh tomatoes and grated parmesan. A sprinkle of toasted almonds if you want some added crunch...


Enjoy!