Everyone is familiar with traditional pesto. The green pesto that celebrates the flavor and color of fresh basil. Its great, but did you know that there is a tomato pesto? There is and it is fantastic!
This roasted tomato pesto is so flavorful and perfect over pasta, as a sandwich spread or a bread dip.
Let’s get started…
Begin by gathering your ingredients.
You will need 16 ounces of good vine ripened tomatoes. You can use full sized tomatoes and slice them into wedges or you can use smaller cherry tomatoes, which are easier to work with and bring a sweeter natural flavor.
You will also need some olive oil, sea salt, dried Italian herbs, fresh basil, garlic, almonds and parmesan.
Something that I love to add to this pesto is black pepper and red pepper flakes and while they are not a traditional part of the recipe, I love what they add to the overall flavor. Add a pinch if you want…
Place your tomatoes onto a baking sheet, give them a drizzle of olive oil and a generous sprinkle of sea salt, dried Italian herbs and some black pepper, if you want to add it.
Roast the tomatoes in a 400 degree oven for about 20 minutes or until they are wilted and lightly caramelized.
Let the tomatoes cool off a bit and then add them into a food processor along with a cup of hand torn basil leaves, a half cup of roughly chopped almonds, a half cup of shredded parmesan, 2 minced garlic cloves and a generous pinch of sea salt.
Pulse until fully combined and then continue to pulse and add olive oil until you reach your desired consistency.
Note: If the tomatoes you are using are super juicy, you may not need to add much olive oil to get a good pesto like consistency.
Ya know how you can kind of see how delicious certain things are just by the way that they look? This roasted tomato pesto is definitely one of those things…
That rich red color, the little flecks of green basil, the creamy almonds and parm… you can see the flavor all over this pesto and once you spread it on a sandwich or stir it into fresh pasta, you will forever think of pesto as both green and red…
… and I’m not saying I have a favorite, but if I did, it would be this one.
Roasted Tomato Pesto
Ingredients
- 16 ounces of vine ripened tomatoes
- olive oil
- sea salt
- dried Italian herb blend
- 1 cup of fresh basil, hand torn
- 2 cloves of garlic, finely minced
- 1/2 cup of almonds, roughly chopped
- 1/2 cup of parmesan, shredded
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 400 degrees
- Spread the tomatoes over a baking sheet, drizzle with olive oil and season with sea salt and some dried Italian herbs
- Roast the tomatoes in a 400 degree oven for about 20 minutes or until they are wilted and lightly caramelized
- Transfer the tomatoes out of the oven to cool while you prepare the other ingredients
- Add the basil leaves, almonds, garlic and parmesan into a food processor along with the cooled roasted tomatoes
- Pulse until combined
- Slowly add olive oil until your desired consistency is achieved (if your tomatoes are very juicy, you may not need a lot of olive oil)
- Add salt to taste
- Serve or store in the refrigerator in an airtight container for up to 4 days
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