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Pesto in salad dressing? Oh yes. Stirring in this herbaceous basil sauce adds nothing but flavor. This pesto salad dressing will become a go to!
Can you put pesto in salad dressing? With a big batch of homemade pesto on hand, Alex asked me this question as we were brainstorming uses for it. We’ve got pesto pasta, pesto pizza, and pesto breakfast sandwiches: so why not pesto salad dressing?
Turns out, this emerald green sauce adds the perfect boost to salads. Our version is a healthy salad dressing that has less calories than the typical dressing, but is creamy and addicting. It’s kind of like a ranch dressing, but with pesto. How can you go wrong with that?
Notes about this pesto salad dressing
This pesto salad dressing recipe is a spin on our Healthy Ranch Dressing. We’ve stumbled upon a secret for making healthy creamy dressings: substitute some of the mayo with plain yogurt! Using yogurt cuts down on the calories in this pesto salad dressing.
With all the flavor going on in this dressing, it weighs in at 48 calories per tablespoon! The other great thing about pesto salad dressing is that it takes just a few minutes to mix up. If you have the pesto on hand already (which we hope you do!), it takes 5 minutes. Here’s what to do:
- In a small bowl, mix together plain yogurt, mayonnaise, pesto, red wine vinegar, and salt.
- Serve immediately, or refrigerate until serving!
Tip: make homemade pesto
You can make this creamy pesto dressing with purchased pesto or homemade pesto. We always recommend trying it out homemade! Keep in mind that this dressing is easiest when you’ve already made a batch of pesto and are looking for ways to use it up.
Making pesto is perfect in the summer when you have access to lots of fresh basil, either in your garden or at the farmers market. If you’re thinking about growing basil, we have a tutorial for growing it at home: How to Grow Basil.
Once you’ve located some basil, all you need is a handful of other ingredients and a food processor. Make our favorite Basil Pesto, or try Cashew Pesto, Walnut Pesto, or Vegan Pesto.
Ways to serve it
What salads would go well with this pesto salad dressing? The question is really, what salads wouldn’t go with it? This dressing is very versatile, and we’d use it anywhere you’d traditionally use a ranch or creamy dressing. Honestly, it would be great on a simple butter lettuce, little gem, or romaine salad! Here are some ideas to get you started:
Dietary notes
This pesto salad dressing recipe is vegetarian and gluten-free.
Frequently asked questions
Homemade pesto dressing can typically last up to 5 days in the refrigerator if stored in an airtight container.
We recommend not freezing this pesto salad dressing.
Pesto dressing is incredibly versatile! It works wonderfully on simple green salads, pasta salads, grain salads, and even roasted vegetable salads. It also complements grilled chicken or grilled fish beautifully.
If your pesto dressing seems too thick, you can thin it out with a little water until you reach your desired consistency.
Pesto Salad Dressing
Pesto in salad dressing? Oh yes. Stirring in this savory basil sauce adds nothing but flavor. This healthy pesto salad dressing will become a go to!
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Cook Time: 0 minutes
- Total Time: 5 minutes
- Yield: ¾ cup 1x
- Category: Salad Dressing
- Method: Stirred
- Cuisine: Italian
Ingredients
- ½ cup plain whole milk yogurt
- ¼ cup tablespoons mayonnaise
- 2 tablespoons prepared pesto (or homemade Basil Pesto or Cashew Pesto)
- 1 teaspoon red wine vinegar
- ⅛ teaspoon kosher salt
Instructions
- Stir together all ingredients in a bowl. Serve immediately or refrigerate until serving.
- Store refrigerated for up to 1 week.
Looking for salad dressings?
Outside of this recipe, here are a few of our very favorite salad dressing recipes:
- Strawberry Salad Dressing
- Homemade Ranch Dressing
- Creamy Avocado Dressing
- Caesar Dressing Recipe
- Best Balsamic Vinaigrette
- Homemade Italian Dressing
- Best Vegan Ranch Dressing
- Blue Cheese Dressing
- Greek Salad Dressing
- Thousand Island Dressing
- Classic French Dressing
- Top 10 Homemade Salad Dressing Recipes
I made the Pesto dressing. Really simple and yummy!
I didn’t have regular yogurt, so I ended up making this with some honey greek yogurt I already had in the fridge. The dressing ended up being a little thick, but it was still AMAZING. I did add an extra 1/2 tsp of vinegar to liquify it a bit, but didn’t want the dressing to be too sharp and pungent, so I just accepted that my dressing would be a little creamier.