Mary DiSomma’s Sun-Dried Tomato Pesto
Pesto is pure magic to me. It is so quick and easy to make and it just tastes so good. Those nights when I'm scratching my head wondering what I can pull together in 30 minutes or less for dinner, it’s pesto to the rescue. It pairs amazingly well with pretty much any pasta dish you can think of—especially my simple and delicious Easy Burrata Pasta with Sun-Dried Tomato Pesto recipe, made with this very pesto.
It’s a little bit of an unconventional pesto, but I promise you it’s going to have a solid place in your recipe box after one little taste. Thanks to my husband Billy’s obsession with sun-dried tomatoes, they found their way into my pesto. It's a delicious twist on the original without any extra-complicated steps. Could it get any better?
Tips for How to Make Homemade Sun-dried Tomato Pesto
Making homemade pesto is so easy. Although most folks are familiar with the tried-and-true basil pesto, there are sooo many delicious variations that are just as easy to whip up at home. In fact, one of the best things about pesto is how easy it is to substitute and add different ingredients—you can get so many different flavors to pair with your favorite dishes.
One of my favorite versions is this sun-dried tomato pesto recipe. Make sure to use sun-dried tomatoes that have been packed in olive oil—this will make a big difference when you blend the ingredients in your food processor. Then it’s just fresh herbs, some extra-virgin olive oil, and freshly grated Parmesan cheese.
How to Store Fresh Pesto
You might be wondering what to do with leftover pesto or how to store freshly made pesto for later use. Here’s my best advice: You can freeze it!
To make portioning easy, put the pesto in an ice cube tray. Freeze the pesto, then pop out the little cubes and keep them in a freezer bag. Take out what you need whenever you need it! If you don’t own an ice cube tray, take a little trip to your local thrift store, where you’ll most likely find one for less than a dollar! You might just find some other treasures too.
Mary DiSomma’s Sun-Dried Tomato Pesto
Ingredients
- One (8.5 ounce) jar of sun-dried tomatoes packed in olive oil
- 2 garlic cloves, peeled and coarsely chopped
- ½ cup chopped fresh basil leaves
- ½ cup chopped fresh oregano leaves
- 4 to 6 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- 2 tablespoons freshly grated Parmesan cheese
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- a pinch of white pepper
Instructions
- Place the sun-dried tomatoes, with the oil, in the bowl of the food processor. Add the basil and oregano leaves and garlic. Pulse to combine.
- With the food processor still running, slowly add enough of the olive oil to create a creamy pesto. The amount will vary depending on the amount of oil in the sun-dried tomatoes. Add the Parmesan cheese, salt, and pepper and pulse quickly until just combined.
- Refrigerate your pesto if you’ll be using it within the next three days. You can also freeze your pesto for future use.