20 ways with pesto

Spread it, smear it, drizzle it, pour it or use it as a dip, pesto is so much more than a pasta sauce and there are so many ways to make the most of it. There are also so many varieties – like rocket, watercress, wild garlic, sun-dried tomato or avocado – to choose from.

But it’s basil pesto that takes first place for me – a mixture of fresh fragrant leaves with garlic, pine nuts, parmesan and a healthy glug of extra virgin olive oil. You can’t beat the classic.

Isabeau Brimeau

Digital producer for delicious. Izzy is a resident Kiwi and lover of all things cheese and pasta

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For inspiration, here are 20 ways to use pesto in your cooking.

1. delicious. macaroni cheese with spinach and pesto prangrattato
Pesto pasta gets a sexy macaroni cheese makeover…

2. Half Baked Harvest’s antipasto skewers with kale pesto
The days of trying to get olives, cheese, tomato, cured meat and pesto on top of a slice of bread are gone. Goodbye messy, food-filled laps and hello perfectly-assembled skewers.

3. Minimalist Baker’s crispy smashed potatoes with garlic pesto
Crispy, smashed, potatoes with pesto – that’s your summer roast sorted.

4. Well and Full’s green pesto breakfast bowl
This one is for brunch lovers and vegans alike – let this be the perfect way to start your day.

5. Sacla’ pesto, cheese and ham toasties
The traditional toastie just got a punchy pesto upgrade and it’s perfect for a hangover.

6. delicious. cheesy sage and garlic bread
Sure, garlic bread is great but this cheesy pesto bread is better.

7. From the Larder’s strawberry sweet pesto cake
Not all that glitters is gold and not all pesto recipes are savoury – would you dare to add pasta to a sweet cake recipe?

8. Cookie and Kate’s kale pesto pizza
Kale has never looked, or tasted, so good. Perhaps it has something to do with all that cheese…

9. Cooking with Cocktail Rings’ pesto potato tacos with goat’s cheese
Carbs in carbs topped with cheese and pesto – taco ’bout a dinner winner.

10. Not Enough Cinnamon’s stuffed portobello mushrooms with ricotta and grilled halloumi
Halloumi and mushrooms are two of my favourite breakfast foods, add ricotta and pesto into the mix and that’s a brand new kind of flavour explosion for brunch.

11. My Diary of Us’ baked pesto risotto balls
Stir pesto and parmesan into leftover risotto, roll into balls, cover in breadcrumbs and bake. Dip into marinara sauce and enjoy.

12. My Fussy Eater’s pesto parmesan pastry straws
These moreish cheesy, pesto nibbles are quick and easy to make (and eat).

13. delicious. halloumi and pesto roasted aubergine
Soft roasted aubergine topped with melted halloumi, pine nuts and pesto and served alongside a glass of red.

14. Taming Twin’s pesto chicken bake
Seven ingredients, one pan and less than 60 minutes until dinner… Sounds almost too good to be true.

15. Tikkido’s pesto shortbread savoury crackers
Your cheeseboard will never be the same after the addition of these crisp crackers.

16. Wallflower Kitchen’s savoury pesto & sun-dried tomato muffins
Nuffin’ wrong with one of these moreish muffins for breakfast, lunch or tea time.

17. delicious. courgetti with avocado pesto
A recipe to keep any mum happy – healthy and packed full of lots of greens.

18. Le Momde de Milan’s candied tomato cupcakes with goat’s cheese and pesto icing
Yes, the blog is written in French but translate the page and you’ll quickly see why this is one of my favourite ways with pesto.

19. Healthy Food Guide’s basil pesto cake
If you live and breathe pesto then this, without a doubt, is the cake for you.

20. The Hopeless Housewife’s grilled chicken pesto sliders
Just look at that melted mozzarella and pesto oozing out of those sliders and tell me you don’t want one…