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If you love hummus and the rich flavor of tomatoes, you’ll ADORE this simple sun-dried tomato hummus. It’s SO versatile, creamy, easy to make, and adds instant flavor to just about everything. Enjoy it on pita, veggies, crackers, sandwiches, and more.
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If you love hummus and the rich flavor of tomatoes, you’ll ADORE this simple sun-dried tomato hummus. It’s SO versatile, creamy, easy to make, and adds instant flavor to just about everything. Enjoy it on pita, veggies, crackers, sandwiches, and more.
It’s perfect for parties, picnics, meal prep, road trips, and everything in between! Just 15 minutes and a food processor or blender required. Let’s make hummus!
This recipe is adapted from the Simple Sun-Dried Tomato Hummus in our cookbook!
This sun dried tomato pesto is a tasty dip or spread! Made with just 6 ingredients, it’s an easy recipe…
This sun dried tomato pesto is a tasty dip or spread! Made with just 6 ingredients, it’s an easy recipe that’s bursting with flavor.
Need a dip idea that doubles as a sandwich spread? This sun dried tomato pesto is bursting with so much zippy flavor, you’ll want to put it on everything! Dip it with with toasted or grilled bread or crackers, and it’s a burst of savory, sweet, tangy, and herby all at once. All you need are a handful of ingredients to whip up a batch. Store it in the fridge and it’s one of those essential recipes that keep on giving: use it as a sandwich spread, pasta sauce, and more!
Sun dried tomato pesto is always a major hit in our household when we make a batch, so we’re extra excited to share it with you. We could not stop dragging our bread slices through the lovely red puree. The flavor is a pop of bright acidity, contrasted with the rich savory undertones of the sun dried tomatoes. Make it for friends and they won’t be able to tear themselves away from the bowl! Here’s what you’ll need for this recipe:
Pine nuts are the star in traditional Italian basil pesto: they have a unique sweet undertone that is essential to the overall flavor. If you can find them, they’re fantastic in sun dried tomato pesto, too. The way the nut blends with the chewy tomatoes is heavenly.
However, pine nuts can be very expensive here in the US. Want a pine nut substitute? Try cashews, which have a slightly sweet flavor as well. Walnuts also work, though they have more of a bitter aftertaste.
This sun dried tomato pesto recipe is simply a matter of blending a few ingredients together. It’s quick and simple and takes only a few minutes to whiz together. Here are a few notes:
This sun dried tomato pesto recipe lasts up to 2 weeks stored in the refrigerator. While you can freeze it for up to 3 months, the texture, consistency and flavor are all better prior to freezing. So if you can, eat it while it’s fresh!
Speaking of…what are the best ways to eat sun dried tomato pesto? We like it best as a dip with grilled bread. However, it’s also tasty as a sandwich spread or even as a pasta sauce! Here are a few ideas:
There are many more ways to make pesto: the traditional basil and other creative spins! Here are some of our favorite pesto recipes:
Vegetarian and gluten-free.
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Prep Time: 10 minutes Cook Time: 0 minutes Total Time: 10 minutes 
Yield: About 1 ½ cups This sun dried tomato pesto is a tasty dip or spread! Made with just 6 ingredients, it’s an easy recipe that’s bursting with flavor.
*You can substitute cashews for a similar flavor, though we like it best with pine nuts.
**Alternatively, you can also use a mortar and pestle.
Category: Dip
Method: No Cook
Cuisine: Italian inspiredKeywords: Sun dried tomato pesto
This basil pesto recipe is a flavor-packed classic Italian sauce starring basil, pine nuts, olive oil, and Parmesan cheese! Got…
This basil pesto recipe is a flavor-packed classic Italian sauce starring basil, pine nuts, olive oil, and Parmesan cheese!
Got a load of fresh basil? Then run, don’t walk, to make a batch of this basil pesto recipe! It’s savory, garlicky, creamy, peppery, and you can slather a smear on anything. Is there anything better? Use it to take pasta from plain to magnificent, or throw it on a pesto pizza for maximum flavor. If you’re never made basil pesto at home: now is the time!
Basil pesto is a sauce that originates in Italy (the city of Genoa, more specifically). The word pesto comes from an Italian word that means “pounded” or “crushed”. A pesto can refer to any type of sauce that is crushed, but pesto alla genovese, the version of pesto from Genoa, is the most popular version. The traditional ingredients in basil pesto are fresh basil leaves, pine nuts, garlic, Parmesan cheese, olive oil, and salt.
Pine nuts are traditional in basil pesto, but they can be pretty expensive here in the US. In this pesto recipe, you can use cashews or walnuts as a substitute. We’ve tested and both turn out fabulously! You can use any type of nut you prefer. Our favorite is pine nuts because they make for the best classic flavor. But the cashew version is delicious, and we always have cashews around.
Another feature we added to our basil pesto recipe is a squeeze of lemon juice! It helps to brighten the flavors and takes this sauce to a while new level.
Basil pesto is traditionally made in a mortar and pestle to grind the ingredients together, but modern recipes typically use a blender or food processor. You’ll simply blend up all ingredients, then add the olive oil until the sauce becomes creamy.
Here’s how to make basil pesto:
There are many ways to change up pesto! Here are a few variations on basil pesto for you:
Here’s an important note! The best way to store homemade pesto, if you’re not going to eat it all at once, is to freeze it. Here’s how to freeze basil pesto:
Ever grown basil? Basil is easy to grow at home: it’s very hardy as long as you place it in full sun! Basil adds an aromatic flavor to such a wide variety of recipes. If you’re looking to grow your own basil plant, go to this step-by-step guide, How to Grow Basil.
When you harvest branches of your basil plant and bring them inside, they’ll wilt after about an hour unless you follow this trick! Place a little water in the bottom of a large ball jar, then place the stems inside, cut side down. Add the top and it will stay fresh for 3 to 5 days in the refrigerator! (See How to Store Basil for more.)
Once you’ve made your basil pesto: what to do with it? There are thousands of recipes for how to use basil pesto online and in cookbooks. To help you sort through the clutter, here are our best recipes with pesto:
Vegetarian and gluten free. For vegan, plant-based, and dairy-free, use Vegan Pesto.
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Prep Time: 5 minutes Cook Time: 0 minutes Total Time: 5 minutes Yield: Heaping 1 cup (about 18 tablespoons) This basil pesto recipe is a flavor-packed classic Italian sauce starring basil, pine nuts, olive oil, and Parmesan cheese!
*Pine nuts are traditional, but can be expensive. We’ve tested both cashews and walnuts and they have great flavor. Since we often have these stocked in our pantry, we use these variations more often than pine nuts.
**You also can do the same method using a mortar and pestle, adding the basil leaves gradually and crushing them against the sides of the mortar.
Category: SauceMethod: BlendedCuisine: ItalianKeywords: Basil pesto, basil pesto recipe, Pesto recipe, Pesto
Wondering what to do with carrot tops? Make pesto! If you’ve made it before and thought “Hmm, that’s resourceful, but I wouldn’t make it again,” we urge you to give this version a try! Thanks to a little help from fresh basil, it̵…
Wondering what to do with carrot tops? Make pesto! If you’ve made it before and thought “Hmm, that’s resourceful, but I wouldn’t make it again,” we urge you to give this version a try! Thanks to a little help from fresh basil, it’s just mildly earthy and worthy of saving in your recipe box!
It adds an herby brightness to pasta, quinoa, roasted carrots, potatoes, chicken, and much more. Bonus? It’s dairy-free and comes together in just 5 minutes in a food processor or blender.
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