Macadamia Cashew Red Pesto

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I love pesto and this recipe is one of my favourites. It's great for low-carb diets and thanks to herbs and tomatoes, it's loaded with potassium.

It goes great with meat, in salads or even as a dip with freshly cut vegetables. After I learnt how easy it is to make your own, I would never buy the ready-made products again.

Here is why you should make your own pesto:

• You have complete control over what ingredients are used. I grow my own basil, use the best olive oil and no preservatives.
• It's cheaper. You can make pesto in advance and freeze it for future uses.
• It's delicious and you can experiment with flavours.

Tips & Substitutions

You can keep your pesto in the fridge for up to a week or two if it's stored properly. It helps to pour a thin layer of olive oil on the top, as it keeps it fresh for longer. Whenever you use pesto, always remember to add a thin layer of olive oil on the top.

If you want to preserve homemade pesto for longer, freeze it in manageable portion sizes by putting it in an ice-cube tray and keep in a plastic bag in the freezer for up to 6 months. Whenever you need to use it, just keep the required portion at room temperature until it melts.

Sun-dried tomatoes usually come in a jar filled with oil. I don't use the oil unless it's extra virgin olive oil. In most cases, it's a mixture of sunflower and olive oil.

Nutritional values (per serving, 1 tbsp, 15 g/ 0.5 oz)

Ingredients (makes about 440 g/ 15.5 oz)

• 1 cup sun-dried tomatoes, drained (110 g/ 3.9 oz)
• ¹/₂ cup macadamia nuts (60 g/ 2.1 oz)
• ¹/₄ cup cashew nuts (30 g/ 1.1 oz)
• ¹/₂ cup grated parmesan cheese or other Italian hard cheese (30 g/ 1.1 oz)
• ¹/₄ cup tomato purée (60 g/ 2.1 oz)
• ¹/₂ lemon, juice and zest or to taste
• 2 cloves garlic, sliced
• 1 cup fresh basil
• ¹/₂ cup extra virgin olive oil (120 ml/ 4 fl oz)
• ¹/₂ tsp sea salt

Instructions

1. Wash the basil, peel and mash the garlic, juice and zest the lemon. Place the oil, basil, garlic, lemon, nuts, sun-dried tomatoes and tomato purée into a food processor and pulse until smooth.
   
   
2. Grate the parmesan cheese and add to the mixture. Pulse again 3-4 times.
   
   
3. When done, use immediately or spoon the mixture in a glass jar, top with a bit of olive oil and seal properly with a lid.
   
   

Ingredient nutritional breakdown (per serving, 1 tbsp, 15 g/ 0.5 oz)

Net carbs	Protein	Fat	Calories
Sun-dried tomatoes (in oil, drained)
0.6 g	0.2 g	0.5 g	8 kcal
Macadamia nuts
0.1 g	0.2 g	1.5 g	14 kcal
Cashew nuts, cashews
0.3 g	0.2 g	0.4 g	6 kcal
Parmesan cheese
0 g	0.4 g	0.3 g	4 kcal
Tomato purée (unsweetened)
0.1 g	0 g	0 g	1 kcal
Lemon (juice), fresh
0.1 g	0 g	0 g	0 kcal
Lemon zest (peel), fresh
0 g	0 g	0 g	0 kcal
Garlic, fresh
0.1 g	0 g	0 g	0 kcal
Basil, fresh
0 g	0 g	0 g	0 kcal
Olive oil, extra virgin
0 g	0 g	3.6 g	32 kcal
Salt, sea salt
0 g	0 g	0 g	0 kcal
Total per serving, 1 tbsp, 15 g/ 0.5 oz
1.3 g	0.9 g	6.3 g	65 kcal