The fresh cherry tomato pesto is a delicious and versatile sauce, perfect with pasta or enjoyed with bruschetta or crostini.

This recipe is very quick to prepare; you just need to blend all the ingredients together, and in a flash, you’ll have a lovely creamy and fragrant mixture ready to use.

For this fantastic pesto, I chose cherry tomatoes for their sweetness and combined them with basil, pine nuts, Parmesan cheese, sun-dried tomatoes, and extra virgin olive oil. So, genuine, healthy, and seasonal ingredients for a super fresh and appetizing summer pesto.

If you like pestos, try these other delicious sauces:

Difficulty: Very easy
Cost: Very cheap
Preparation time: 5 Minutes
Portions: 4 People
Cooking methods: No cooking
Cuisine: Italian

Ingredients for Fresh Cherry Tomato Pesto

1.1 lbs cherry tomatoes
1 cup basil
1/3 cup pine nuts
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
3 sun-dried tomatoes in oil
1 clove garlic
3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
2 pinches salt

Preparation of Fresh Cherry Tomato Pesto

Place the cherry tomatoes, washed and dried basil leaves, pine nuts, grated Parmesan cheese, sun-dried tomatoes in oil, the three tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil, and the clove of garlic in a blender.
Blend everything until you have a thick and homogeneous cream. Then add 2 pinches of salt and mix well.
Transfer the fresh cherry tomato pesto to a bowl and garnish with some basil leaves.

Storage

You can store the fresh cherry tomato pesto in the fridge for three to four days in an airtight container.

You can also freeze it by following these steps:
Portion: pour the pesto into small containers or ice cube trays, so you can defrost only the amount needed.
Oil layer: cover the surface of the pesto with a thin layer of extra virgin olive oil to prevent it from oxidizing and turning dark.
Seal well: close containers airtight or wrap ice cubes in plastic wrap.
Label: write the date on the container; the pesto can stay in the freezer for up to 3 months.
How to defrost: it’s best to leave it in the refrigerator for a few hours or overnight, or you can add it directly to hot pasta: the heat will defrost it quickly without compromising the taste.
Extra tip: if after defrosting the pesto is a bit more liquid, blend it briefly with some Parmesan cheese or a few pine nuts to restore its creamy consistency.

Suggestions

You can use the cherry tomato pesto to dress pasta, whether for land or sea dishes, or to fill tasty bruschetta (perhaps adding diced mozzarella and oregano).