Fresh Basil Pesto

Without a doubt, summer is the best time to make fresh basil pesto. Basil thrives in warm weather, reaching its most fragrant and flavorful peak between June and August. This is when your pesto will taste the most vibrant — earthy, bright, and herbaceous.

Paired with seasonal ingredients like lemon juice, garlic, and olive oil, and blended with buttery pine nuts and Grana Padano, this pesto becomes a smooth, luxurious sauce that captures everything we love about summer: freshness, simplicity, and bold flavor without the heaviness.

Garlic, pine nuts, and olive oil are pantry staples, but for the best flavor, use extra virgin olive oil and fresh garlic.

Grana Padano is available in most cheese sections.

Yes, here is what you could do:

Grana Padano is easy to change with Parmigiano-Reggiano, pecorino, or even Parmesan.

Pine nuts can be swapped with walnuts, almonds, or sunflower seeds.

If basil is unavailable, try arugula, parsley, or cilantro for pesto.

Definitely. Serve it on Tomato Burrata Salad, Mediterranean Baby Baked Potatoes, Breaded Beef Steak, Mediterranean Veal Cutlets, Foil Baked Sea Bream, Mediterranean Baked Trout, you name it!

Here are my tips on how to make this pesto sauce simply amazing:

• When using pesto for toppings, don’t overdress.
• Use Italian Grana Padano cheese, which will give your pesto so much umami flavor.
• If making pesto ahead of time, keep components separate and assemble just before serving.

This would relate more to the dish you would serve the fresh basil pesto on, but in case of most salads, for example, you would look at Sauvignon Blanc or Pinot Grigio that are great to highlight the fresh basil. Encruzado is another one.

As an alternative, you can choose Prosecco to add a special celebration feel to it.

For a non-alcoholic option, opt for iced mint tea, sparkling water with lemon, or basil lemonade. Yum!

The pesto is best enjoyed fresh, but if you need to store it, I would recommend no more than 3 days. The olive oil may thicken slightly, so before consuming, take it out of the fridge, let it sit in the room temperature for around 15 minutes, then mix and serve.