Avocado Pistachio Pesto

I always enjoy making my own pesto and experimenting with different ingredients. All you need is a blender, nuts or seeds, herbs and healthy oils. I've been making my own pesto for many years. It helps me avoid all the unnecessary additives found in commonly available products, it's cheaper, and best of all, using keto-friendly pesto in your everyday cooking is an easy way to boost your electrolyte intake! Keep in mind, pesto itself won't be enough and you'll still need to eat foods such as salmon, spinach or avocado.

Although it's a common ingredient in pasta dishes, you can be creative and include it in your low-carb diet. Add it to "zoodles" to create flavourful recipes with just a few ingredients. Depending on your choice of herbs, you can try it on top of cooked fish or meat. Basil goes great with any fish and poultry, cilantro and rosemary with lamb, and parsley is perfect with pork or beef.

You can even use it as a dip with freshly cut vegetables and even in salads, where it adds a wonderful flavour. Here are a couple of my recipes with home-made pesto: Caprese Skewers and Quick Beef Ragù with "Zoodles".

You can keep your pesto in the fridge for up to a week or two if it's stored properly. It helps to pour a thin layer of olive oil on the top, as it keeps it fresh for longer. Whenever you use pesto, always remember to add a thin layer of olive oil on the top. If you want to preserve home-made pesto for longer, freeze it in manageable portion sizes by putting it in an ice-cube tray and keep in a bag in the freezer for up to 6 months. Whenever you need to use it, just keep the required portion at room temperature until it melts

Step-by-step

1. Halve and peel the avocado and remove the seed. Wash the basil, peel and mash the garlic and juice the lemon. Place the avocado, basil, garlic, lemon juice, pistachio nuts and oil into a food processor and pulse until smooth.

   

2. Season with salt and add more to taste if needed. It may also help if you soak the pistachios for 1-2 hours before blending. Otherwise, let it sit for at least an hour to allow the nuts to soften. This will help create a soft and creamy texture.

   

3. When done, use immediately or spoon the mixture in a glass jar, top with a bit of avocado or olive oil and seal properly with a lid. Store in the fridge for up to 2 weeks.

   

Recipe

Avocado Pistachio Pesto

★★★★☆4.4 (53 ratings)

Easy homemade pesto made with fragrant herbs and healthy fats. A simple recipe made with creamy avocados ...

Hands on

5m

Overall

5m

Servings

28

0.5 g

Net carbs

0.5 g

Protein

5.6 g

Fat

55

kcal

1 serving2 servings3 servings4 servings5 servings6 servings7 servings8 servings9 servings10 servings11 servings12 servings14 servings28 servings56 servings84 servings112 servings

US + metricMetricUS

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Ingredients makes about 400 g /14 oz

• 1 large avocado (200 g/ 7.1 oz)
• 3 cups fresh basil (18 g/ 0.6 oz)
• ¹/₃ cup pistachio nuts, unsalted (41 g/ 1.4 oz)
• 2 tbsp fresh lemon juice (30 ml)
• 3 cloves garlic, sliced
• ¹/₂ cup avocado oil or extra virgin olive oil (120 ml/ 4 fl oz)
• 1 tsp sea salt
• Optional: ¹/₂ cup grated Parmesan cheese (30 g/ 1.1 oz)

Instructions

1. Halve and peel the avocado and remove the seed. Wash the basil, peel and mash the garlic and juice the lemon. Place the avocado, basil, garlic, lemon juice, pistachio nuts and oil into a food processor and pulse until smooth.

2. Season with salt and add more to taste if needed. It may also help if you soak the pistachios for 1-2 hours before blending. Otherwise, let it sit for at least an hour to allow the nuts to soften. This will help create a soft and creamy texture.

3. When done, use immediately or spoon the mixture in a glass jar, top with a bit of avocado or olive oil and seal properly with a lid. Store in the fridge for up to 2 weeks.

Nutrition per 1 tbsp, 15 ml

Carbs 4%Protein 4%Fat 92% of calories

Net carbs

0.5 g

Total carbs

1.2 g

Fiber

0.7 g

Sugars

0.2 g

Protein

0.5 g

Fat

5.6 g

Saturated fat

0.7 g

Calories

55 kcal

Sodium

83 mg · 3.59% RDA

Magnesium

5 mg · 1.18% RDA

Potassium

61 mg · 3.07% EMR

Nutrition by ingredient

Per 1 tbsp, 15 ml	Net carbs	Protein	Fat	kcal
Avocado, fresh	0.1 g	0.1 g	1.1 g	11
Basil, fresh	0 g	0 g	0 g	0
Pistachio nuts, unsalted	0.2 g	0.3 g	0.7 g	8
Lemon (juice), fresh	0.1 g	0 g	0 g	0
Garlic, fresh	0.1 g	0 g	0 g	0
Oil, avocado	0 g	0 g	3.9 g	34
Salt, pink Himalayan rock salt	0 g	0 g	0 g	0
Total	0.5 g	0.5 g	5.6 g	55

Serving size 1 tbsp, 15 ml

• Gluten free
• Dairy free
• Egg free
• Nightshade free
• Pork free
• Coconut free
• Fish free
• Shellfish free
• Beef free
• Pescatarian
• Vegetarian