This Tomato Salad with Pecan Pesto is a delicious, no-cook way to experience summer’s best flavors.
Tomato Salad with Pecan Pesto
Yields: 6 servings
Ingredients
- 5 heirloom tomatoes, sliced
- 1 medium red onion, thinly sliced
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
- 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- Juice of 2 limes
- 1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh oregano
- 1 teaspoon sea salt
- ½ teaspoon ground black pepper
- Pecan Pesto (recipe follows)
Instructions
- In a large bowl, toss together tomatoes, onion, parsley, oil, lime juice, oregano, salt, and pepper. Serve with Pecan Pesto.
Pecan Pesto
Yields: 6 to 8 ounces
Ingredients
- 2 cloves garlic
- 1½ cups loosely packed fresh basil
- ⅓ cup pecans
- ¼ cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
- Juice of 1 lemon
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
- Ground black pepper, to taste
- ¼ to ⅓ cup extra-virgin olive oil
Instructions
- In the work bowl of a food processor, place garlic; pulse for a few seconds until minced. Add basil, and pulse until finely chopped, stopping to scrape sides of bowl as needed. Add pecans, cheese, lemon juice, salt, and pepper; pulse until combined.
- With processor running, add oil in a slow, steady stream, stopping to scrape sides of bowl as needed. Continue adding oil, 1 tablespoon at a time, until desired consistency is reached. (The more oil you add, the thinner the consistency will be.) Cover and refrigerate for up to 1 week.
What can be substituted for basil? My friend is allergic to basil.
Hi Evelyn! Sorry to hear your friend is allergic to basil. Fortunately, you can use a variety of greens to make your pesto. Parsley, cilantro, arugula, kale, collards, mustard greens, and spinach are all great options, but keep the tenderness of the greens in mind. If you pick something sturdier than fresh basil, like collards or kale, you will need to blanch the greens. Cook them in a large pot of boiling salted water until bright green and tender (about 45 seconds) then begin following our recipe for Pecan Pesto. Please let us know how it turns out when you make it! We’d love to hear what you try.
I loved this salad. We have an abundance of fresh garden tomatoes this year so this recipe was perfect. Thanks.
Thank you for the options. I mixed with parsley to tone down the basil, very good.