Lemon Balm Pesto with Provolone and Macadamia nuts

Today I’m sharing my recipe for Lemon Balm Pesto but before I share the recipe I wanna  explain how it came to be.

I love plants and I love to garden. I have a lady that sells plants at the local farmers market that I’ve known for years. She always hooks me up with awesome deals and amazing healthy plants. A few years ago I was wanting to collect different herbs and along with the 4 kinds of mint I got from her I also got a small start of Lemon Balm. Her husband (who works with her and is the sweetest elderly gentlemen) told me to make sure I love it or keep it in a container because it will spread and is a nightmare to get rid of.

Fast forward 2 years, I have two big and healthy bushes of lemon balm and a million little starts all over the herb garden. I do love it and walk in the garden just to smell it sometimes, but with my abundance of it I thought, is there anything else I can do with this stuff other than make tea?

Google is my friend and when I looked up ‘uses for lemon balm’ I found a few other things you can do and loved the idea of a lemon balm pesto.

And now we are here.

I’ve made a few versions of this pesto, using different cheeses and nut combos, but provolone and macadamia nuts wins ‘the best combo’ contest. This pesto is not ‘in your face’ in flavor but is very creamy and refreshing. It’s mellow enough to eat straight, I like it on toast, or it’s perfect in pasta.

You can substitute different cheeses or nuts and still get a similar flavor profile, just make sure they don’t out shine the bite and earthiness of the lemon balm.

I now have a delicious way to use my over abundance of Lemon Balm and it is no longer taking over the herb garden because of it.

You can use this pesto in place of the pesto in my zoodle recipe.

Lemon Balm Pesto with Provolone and Macadamia nuts

Print Recipe

• Author: Alycia Louise
• Prep Time: 5 minutes
• Total Time: 5 minutes
• Yield: 6 1x
• Category: Main Course
• Cuisine: American

Ingredients

Units USM Scale 1x2x3x

• 1 Bunch Lemon Balm (Roughly 2 cups of loose leaves and stems.)
• 1 cup Chives (Roughly chopped)
• 1/2 cup Macadamia nuts
• 1/4 cup Provolone cheese
• 1 tsp Salt
• 1/2 tsp Pepper
• 2 TBS Lemon juice
• 2 TBS Avocado oil (can sub for olive oil)

Instructions

1. Wash the lemon balm and pick out any unwanted leaves and stems. 
2. Fill a food processor with the lemon balm, chives, Macadamia nuts, and provolone cheese. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and put the lid on.
3. Start the processor and pour in the Lemon Juice, allowing everything to break down. Stop and scrape the sides down if needed.
4. Then with processor still running add the avocado oil and process until it’s the desired consistency.
5. The pesto is ready to use right away or can be stored in the fridge (5-7 days) or the freezer (up to a month is best). I enjoy it on toast, pasta, and in scrambled eggs.

Notes

A food processor is key in making a great pesto without a ton of mindless hand chopping. I recommend this one.

 

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Keywords: Gardening, Gluten free, lemon balm, Pasta, Pesto