30 Fresh Basil Recipes

A list of basil recipes must start with a pesto recipe, right? This is our best pesto, with a bright green color and irresistible flavor. You can use either cashews or walnuts as a sub for the traditional pine nuts, if you'd like. They’re a fraction of the price and give pesto a fantastic texture. Pesto is perfect for using a bushy basil plant. It also freezes well and you can have pesto all winter long!

Also try: Vegan Pesto or Cashew Pesto

A favorite basil recipe to make this fresh herb into a meal: Tomato Basil Pasta! This easy dinner idea stars blistered tomatoes, a technique of cooking tomatoes in a hot pan until the skin blisters and blackens. Mix the tomatoes with tangy balsamic vinegar, then add al dente pasta and peppery fresh basil. These summer ingredients infuse massive flavor in just 20 minutes.

Are you basil obsessed? There’s nothing better than the peppery fresh flavor of this bright green herb. So get ready to take everything that’s incredible about basil and eat it as a pizza topping. That means garlicky, thick homemade basil pesto slathered onto perfect pizza dough, topped with gooey mozzarella and a huge handful of fresh basil leaves. It’s the brightest green, tastiest basil pizza you’ll ever make.

What’s a more classic basil recipe than tomato basil soup? This one is oh so easy to make. Chop some veggies, simmer with basil, then blend. All hail the tomato basil soup! It couldn’t be cozier, and it’s perfect accompanied by crusty bread. This version is a gluten free, dairy free and vegan soup recipe, so it fits many diets. Also try: Tomato Basil Gnocchi Soup.

And to round out the must-have basil recipes: how about a caprese salad? This salad represents Italian cuisine at its finest: beautiful ingredients combined in a way that’s both elegant and simple. It's got beautifully ripe juicy tomatoes, fresh mozzarella and peppery basil leaves, seasoned with salt and pepper. Like pizza margherita, each of the ingredients corresponds to the colors of the Italian flag: red, white and green.

Need a great homemade tomato sauce for pasta? Try this Tomato Basil Sauce, a rustic sauce that’s bold on tomato flavor: in 20 minutes! Some tomato sauce recipes bubble for an hour or more, but this one’s quick to whip up. It works with 8 ounces pasta, so it’s great for a fast weeknight dinner with a few easy sides: or double for a crowd!

Try it on: Burrata Pasta with Tomato Basil Sauce

Need an easy side dish? Try this herbaceous basil rice! It’s simple to whip up with fresh basil, butter, and garlic, which bring an aromatic flavor to this easy side dish. A bit of lemon zest and juice add an extra citrus spin! It’s amazing what a few extra ingredients can do to add pizzazz to simple rice. 

Bright green pesto goes hand in hand with tender baked fish to make a stunning dinner. Because really: what isn’t better with a little pesto on top? It’s mid-summer here and we’re making all the pesto with our overactive basil plant. The savory, garlicky sauce makes the flaky fish pop: you’ll already be taking your second bite before finishing the first. It’s easy enough for a weeknight, but impressive enough to serve to guests.

Want a spin on pesto without pine nuts? Try Pistou! Pistou is the classic French cousin of pesto, and it’s even simpler: all you need are basil, garlic, and olive oil. Mash it into a paste and you’ve got a chunky sauce that’s great for dipping and drizzling. It’s like a nut free dairy free pesto that packs just as much flavor.

Try it on: Classic Ratatouille

Got basil? Fresh basil leaves are pure gold: an abundance can make everything from fresh basil pesto to caprese salad and everything in between. Here’s a fun way to use this fresh herb: basil lemonade! It has a sweet tart, refreshing flavor with a pungent finish of basil to each sip. 

Got basil? Here’s a great way to use it to make an impressive dinner recipe: Pesto Chicken! Combine basil pesto with a bit of cream and it makes a stunning fresh sauce for juicy chicken breasts! It’s a quick trick that makes an everyday dinner into something special, perfect for entertaining or just an easy weeknight meal.

This pesto cavatappi recipe is a tasty way to enjoy them both that everyone around the table will love. You’ll make a quick and easy pesto cream sauce, then drench the curly noodles and add a few handfuls of shredded Parmesan cheese. It’s simple, but it’s got mighty big flavor!

Got lots of basil? You don’t have to get stuck in a pesto rut. Try this Basil Vinaigrette! It’s got loads of fresh, tangy flavor: it actually tastes like pesto in dressing form. It’s ideal on salads, especially a summer tomato salad. But the sky’s the limit: use it as a sauce for chicken or seafood, or even to drizzle on goat cheese crostini. The flavor is ultra tangy and it takes just 5 minutes to blend together.

What’s more a quintessential summer dish than a great pasta salad? Try this Pesto Pasta Salad recipe, which celebrates everything seasonal in summer! It features chewy bowties with pops of fresh cherry tomatoes, tangy artichokes and peppery baby arugula. Make a batch of fresh basil pesto or grab some at the store, then mix it up in to a creamy dressing to cover everything. 

If it’s the time of year when our basil plant is big and bushy, that means all things pesto! Here’s one of our favorite ways to use this herbaceous spread: in pesto grilled cheese! It gives the best garlicky, herby flavor to the gooey melty cheese, making it one irresistible sandwich. 

Here’s one of the best ways to use a summer melon: watermelon basil salad! The classic combination of sweet melon and salty cheese is made even more perfect with basil. It gives a fresh, herbaceous finish that makes each bite positively irresistible! This summer salad is ideal for entertaining or a carefree evening al fresco. 

Here’s a great recipe for adding nuance in flavor to cocktails and mocktails: try basil simple syrup! It’s quick to whip up and infuses a fresh, herbaceous nuance to everything it touches. All you need is a handful of fresh basil, sugar, and 30 minutes. Use the syrup in drinks like cocktails, mocktails or lemonade, or you can even drizzle it over fresh berries for a simple dessert.

Looking for the basil recipe that spells dinner? Try this Chicken Pesto Sandwich! It starts with juicy grilled chicken, seasoned to perfection with a savory mix of spices. Throw it onto grilled ciabatta bread, then top with baby arugula, soft fresh mozzarella cheese and juicy tomato slices. The crowning glory is a mound of bright green herbaceous basil pesto. 

Here’s a basil recipe that works as a quick main dish or easy side: try this Pesto Tortellini! The herby, creamy sauce is perfect for coating tender tortellini (or tortelloni…more on that below!). Sometimes we eat it as a main with a few veggie sides, or it’s perfect alongside chicken or fish.

Did you know one of the easiest ways to cook gnocchi is…baked on a sheet pan? Nope, no boiling a big pot of water involved! Throw them onto a sheet pan, top with pesto and add veggies, and throw them in the oven. They bake up to a deliciously crispy on the outside, gooey on the inside texture that’s ultra delicious and so so easy. Add pesto and fresh basil and it's a stunning side dish or vegetarian main.

Here’s a dip and spread you’ll want to use on just about everything: basil aioli! This rich, creamy spread is great for making when you have lots of summer basil: or anytime you’re craving fresh, beautiful flavor! This basil aioli is full of peppery, herby flavor: the perfect dip for french fries or spread for sandwiches. Aioli is so easy to make: you just need a handful of ingredients and 5 minutes. 

Also try: Pesto Aioli

The flavor in this spaghetti is out of this world! The fire roasted tomatoes and peppery fresh basil leaves make for a flavor-popping but quick-to-make sauce. The recipe you'll see is for the Instant Pot, and it cooks in 5 minutes! Don't have an Instant Pot? You can use the same ingredients but do it on the stovetop: simmer the sauce in a saucepan while you boil the pasta, then combine for a quick and tasty dinner!

Also try: Pesto Pasta or Pesto Spaghetti

Here’s a sauce you’ll want to put on just about everything…bright green basil sauce! It’s packed full of garlicky, herby flavor: essentially like a pesto without the nuts and cheese. It’s more intensely packed with flavor than pesto: like a garlic and basil oil. Use it on just about anything a punch of basil: pasta, seafood, juicy ripe tomatoes, Caprese salad…anything is better with basil sauce. 

Got basil? Love gin? Here’s the ideal drink for you: the Gin Basil Smash! This modern spin on the Whiskey Smash is light and herbaceous, pairing peppery basil with botanical gin. If there’s summer in a cocktail glass, this is it!

Also try: Gin & Basil Cocktail or Basil Gimlet Recipe

This grilled cheese with tomatoes & basil isn’t just any old grilled cheese. Tomatoes are roasted just long enough until they’re starting to burst, then mashed to extract the juice. It’s mixed with a bit of mayo to become a sort of roasted tomato mayonnaise that totally makes the sandwich! Then of course, you’ll add to that the peppery bite of fresh basil: an essential component that takes it over the top. The combination of the savory tomatoes, silky mayonnaise and fresh basil on crunchy grilled bread is a little bit of heaven.

This tortellini soup with basil is savory and hearty, with a lightly sweet depth that makes you want the bowl to be never-ending. Sauteing the onion with tomato paste and paprika before adding the rest of the ingredients gives just the right complexity to the broth. And a bit of carrot and celery add texture and crunch. Basil leaves are added right after the tortellini cooks, which meld into the beautiful velvety broth. Add a bit of Parmesan cheese and it’s a little bit of heaven.

Here’s an idea that has easy weeknight meal written all over it: pesto shrimp! Turns out this bright green, garlicky sauce is the perfect pairing for this succulent shellfish. The two flavors go hand-in-hand, just like famous duos like tomatoes and basil. 

And why not use basil...in a crisp recipe? This peach crisp so satisfying: the filling perfectly highlights ripe peaches, scented with a hint of peppery basil. And the topping is delightfully crunchy, featuring oats and almond flour. It's naturally gluten free and can also be easily made vegan using coconut oil instead of butter! We've made it both ways and it's excellent either way.

Here’s a deliciously bubbly drink that’s calling your name (and ours too): the Basil Collins! This basil cocktail is a summer spin on the Tom Collins, featuring cucumber and that peppery fresh herb you might be growing in a pot or your garden. It’s got a tangy sweet flavor, a cucumber basil essence and a load of bubbles packed in that glass.

Also try: Strawberry Basil Cocktail

Last up in our basil recipes: what about a fluorescent green basil oil? It’s simple to put together, easier and cheaper than pesto, and darn tasty. Blending blanched basil with olive oil yields a beautiful, verdant green sauce that tastes like summer. Use it on sliced tomatoes, as a dip for bread, on pasta, or crostini with goat cheese.