Basil Pesto Hummus
Looking for a fun and tasty summer appetizer? Whip up a batch of Basil Pesto Hummus! This recipe is great to serve when hanging out with friends on the back porch!
We have a lot of pesto stored away in our downstairs freezer. Whenever I need fresh basil for a recipe during the summer, I just buy a basil plant from the garden center rather than the basil leaves from the produce section. Once I pick off however many leaves I need, I stick that basil plant in a pot on the back porch. And by the end of the summer? I always end up with several very large basil plants!
Once the evenings begin to turn chilly, I’ll go out and pick all of the basil leaves off those plants. And then I make a gigantic batch of pesto – in truth, it’s usually 2-3 batches. It’s a lot of pesto! (I always use this recipe for basil pesto. A local chef shared his recipe with me years ago, and it’s been our go-to ever since.) Pesto freezes well, and I freeze it in ice cube trays or snack-sized ziptop bags. (If I use ice cube trays, then I pop up the ‘pesto bombs’ the next day into a large freezer bag.)
We use that frozen pesto all year long – this Pesto Pasta with Grilled Chicken is one of our favorites! Our basil plants are growing well on the back porch this year, and they’re already quite large. While I do love pesto, we still have pesto from last year’s batch down in the freezer. I decided to use up some of those fresh basil leaves, and that’s what led to this Basil Pesto Hummus!
Basil Pesto Hummus
I love hummus! I’ve absolutely made entire lunches out of pita chips and a container of hummus – it’s an easy way to mix up the lunch routine. With the idea of hummus in mind, I set out to blend the flavors of hummus with the flavors of pesto.
Hummus relies on olive oil, chickpeas, tahini and garlic. Pesto relies on olive oil, fresh basil. garlic and pine nuts. The ingredient list has some similarities, so I figured it wouldn’t be too big of a stretch to add the necessary ingredients for pesto into a batch of homemade hummus. Let me tell ya – the flavor of this Basil Pesto Hummus is amazing!
Hummus is surprisingly easy to make at home, and I highly recommend putting this Basil Pesto Hummus on your summer snacking list. It’s packed with fantastic flavor, and we enjoyed eating it with slices of warm pita bread.
Another fun way to use this hummus is hummus sandwiches. We spread a generous amount of hummus on top of lightly toasted bread. From there, we layer all sorts of veggies on top – sliced cucumbers, tomatoes, sprouts, etc. It makes for a tasty summer sandwich!
I hope this Basil Pesto Hummus makes an appearance in your kitchen soon. It doesn’t take long to make, and Laura pointed out that this would be a fun snack/appetizer to serve when we have friends over to hang out on the back porch. I hope you enjoy this recipe as much as we do! Cheers!
Did you make a batch of this Basil Pesto Hummus? Leave a comment, or snap a photo and tag me on Instagram (@Spicedblog) – I’d love to see your version!
Basil Pesto Hummus
Ingredients
- ⅓ cup tahini
- ¼ cup fresh lemon juice
- 1 tsp minced garlic
- ½ tsp salt
- ½ tsp ground cumin
- 2 Tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
- ¾ cup fresh basil leaves
- 2 Tbsp grated Parmesan cheese
- 1 15.5-oz. can chickpeas (~1½ cups cooked chickpeas), drained and rinsed
- 2-3 Tbsp water as needed
- {optional} toasted pine nuts for topping
- {optional} olive oil for drizzling on top
- {optional} prepared basil pesto homemade or store-bought, for topping
Instructions
- Using a food processor, add tahini, lemon juice, garlic, salt and cumin; blend for 1-2 minutes.
- Add olive oil, fresh basil leaves and Parmesan cheese; blend for 1 minute.
- Add ½ of the drained and rinsed chickpeas; blend for 1 minute. Scrape down sides and bottom of food processor and then add remaining chickpeas. Blend for 1 more minute.
- At this point, the hummus will likely be quite thick. With the food processor running, slowly add 2-3 Tbsp of water until the mixture reaches desired consistency.
- Transfer hummus into a bowl and {optional} top with toasted pine nuts, olive oil and basil pesto.
- Refrigerate hummus in an airtight container for up to 1 week.
Looking for more pesto recipes? Check out these other favorites:
cant wait to make this soon for me can i use vegan parmesan i never had basil pesto hummus before i love pesto soooooooooooo much perfect for my snacks or your snacks recipes love your recipes as always brightens up my day everyday after work
You can absolutely use vegan Parmesan for this recipe – I hope you enjoy it, Ramya!
What a great idea combining pesto and hummus together into one dip! Makes the hummus so much more flavourful too!
Pesto and hummus both have such similar ingredients…it just felt like a natural combination! Thanks, Michelle!
I think using homemade pesto in hummus is a really nice summer twist. I love it. Basil is very abundant this time of year in Florida. I often buy the plants too. Thanks for sharing this fantastic recipe idea.
Best,
Velva
Yes! This is a great way to use up that basil – sure, you have to make a batch of pesto, but pesto does freeze well, so I say make a gigantic batch and put some in the freezer for later! Thanks, Velva!
This is some gorgeous hummus David! That green is stunning. Hummus and pesto are two of my favorite things. Put them together like this, and I’m definitely a fan! What a great idea to transfer the basil plant to a pot after using its leaves. I can’t believe I never thought to do that. Definitely going to do that this summer, and make this Basil Pesto Hummus! 😋
Hey Shannon! I always end up with a random collection of herbs in pots by the end of the summer – but it’s great having fresh herbs right on the back porch. The leftover basil always turns into pesto at the end of the summer. I do recommend this Basil Pesto Hummus – it’s pretty darn tasty!!
Ohhh I love the idea of this one, nice colours too. The basil would give it some nice refreshing flavour plus the aroma would be wonderful too
Thanks so much, Raymund! This is indeed a refreshing and tasty recipe for warm summer days!
i love hummus and always have some in the fridge. I’ve grown basil in the past but the bugs get it and the possums … the native blue bees adore the flowers… this sounds tasty david.
The possums eat your basil!? Well that’s not good! You can certainly use a jar of storebought pesto for this recipe, Sherry. That way you don’t have to worry about the possum! 🙂
That is a great looking basil plant. I love how you save and freeze all that pesto! Great idea. Adding it to hummus is also such a great idea. So much flavor!
I have to admit that the pesto idea came about as a bit of a “Hmmm, what in the world am I going to do with all of this basil” problem. But now it’s not a problem at all – in fact, I use the end of the summer basil plants to restock the yearly supply of pesto in the freezer! And this pesto hummus? It’s going on the regular rotation around here! 🙂
What a clever sounding fusion dish. I love hummus and I love pesto, so… The color is really cool, too.
And hope you move went well, btw!
The move did indeed go well, Frank – that’s the reason for the delayed response here. We’re all settled in Asheville, and we love (LOVE) it here. Now I just need to get rid of all these moving boxes…and I need to make another batch of this hummus, too!
I am crazy about hummus and I am crazy about basil pesto, so I know I will be crazy about your Basil Pesto Hummus. There’s nothing better in my book than sitting around with friends, enjoying appetizers like this hummus, fresh pita bread, and a good glass of wine. I think I need to invite some of our neighbors who are great friends as well and enjoy some social time. Thanks for sharing.
I truly love this basil pesto basil, Kristy – it’s all of the creamy texture of hummus with the bonus flavor of pesto. It’s great for summer afternoons – or summer lunches! I hear ya on the glass of wine, good friends and tasty snacks. We’re working on meeting new friends here in the new neighborhood!
Love this. I don’t often make hummus, but I do often make white bean dip. I don’t personally see the need to always add tahini and lemon to a bean dip. Just me. But by just using white beans, anything and everything can be added, and it’s not called hummus, just a white bean dip. And, pesto, without the cheese, which is how I make and freeze pesto every summer, works so well in white bean dips. It’s just what I do. Great photos!
I hear ya, Mimi – I do personally enjoy both hummus (with tahini) and white bean dip (without tahini). This pesto twist would work for both versions! I should try it as a white bean dip soon…I’ve still got some pesto to use up and more pesto will be coming at the end of the summer!
I prefer to buy herbs in pots, too (The difference though is that most of them – and basil particularly – don’t really do well. But the basil planted in our garden isn’t growing too well, either. That must be the climate or something. And by “something” I totally mean Andrew who loves and oversees the garden haha). I love both hummus and pesto, but I never would have thought of mixing them up. I think it’s a genius idea! Pesto usually has a very bold, distinctive flavour (Which is sometimes a little bit too much for me). But combined with creamy and smooth hummus, all the flavours get balanced I bet!
Oh no! I’ve always had good luck with basil – it turns into a gigantic bush by the end of the summer. Perhaps the milder weather up in your area is the cause. I say get some basil pesto and make a batch of this hummus – it’s pretty fantastic as a summer lunch!
You’ve combined a couple of my very favorite things here, David! Love this for dipping and it would be a knock-out sandwich spread too!
This is indeed great as a sandwich spread! We ate most of it as a dip with pita chips, but we did make a fresh veggie sandwich with the last little bit. Holy cow! That was a great summer sandwich. Thanks, Marissa!