Nov 12, 2026
When I was in college, one of my professors gave us the answer to the entire class on the very day of classes. He said our purpose that semester was figure out why and how the answer was true. So, to set your mind at ease, I’ll give you the answer by starting at the end here- the answer is that you can use as many {or a few} herbs as you’d like! The number 100 is an homage to a toast that my Italian- American side of the family says to each other where we cheers to 100 years of health {“To your health for 100 years! Salud, chindon!”}.
How the 100 Herb Pesto came to be:
It all started at the beginning of summer on the farm at Bluestem Botanicals. Our herb class harvested dandelion greens and nettles to make pesto. I was hooked! I brought some home to my husband and he was hooked! So I kept making pestos all summer long, blending any and all herbs in my ever-growing herb garden. I’m very passionate about homemade things from scratch, always have been. I’m also passionate about nutrient density of my foods. Keeping these 2 things in mind, you will see a clear pattern in many of my recipes.
We ate pesto here and there and everywhere! On boats and moats and..... Jk- we ate them on crackers {homemade!}, sandwiches, in my pasta sauces {red and white/ also homemade!} and mixed into hummus {homemade again}! There are so many uses for Pesto {and you can freeze cubes for future use}.
In my most recent batch, here are some of the herbs I used:
- Carrot tops (yep, edible, yummy & very nutritious/ I recommend chopping into much smaller pieces before blending)
- Green Sage (cognitive function, antimicrobial)
- Lemon balm (nervine- calming to the nervous system & bright lemon flavor)
- Dandelion greens (bitter herb- supports digestions & liver function, nutrient dense)
- Basil with flowers (anti-inflammatory/ flowers are also edible & beautiful)
- Green onion (immune booster)
- Garlic chives (bone health)
Gather your herbs along with 1 cup of walnuts, 2 fresh lemons, extra virgin olive oil {EVOO}, salt & pepper {S&P}, 3-5 fresh garlic cloves, freshly grated Parmigiano Reggiano (PR). I am one of the “feeling” type of cooks- I know what the dish needs by smelling, watching and feeling- I taste along the way but I enjoy observing my food in other ways too. So, start with these general guides, using less or more as needed depending on your tastes and batch sizes. Sometimes I don’t have enough herbs to make a straight pesto, so I make a pesto hummus! {essentially this recipe plus a can of chickpeas with tahini and other spices to taste, but more on that another time}.
~ Place herbs in Vitamix {or whichever blender you have}. Toast your walnuts in a pan on low for a few minutes or until golden. {sub in more traditional pine nuts}. Let cool for 10 minutes.
~ Toss your garlic cloves into the blender {unpeeled if using a Vitamix! Yes, you read that correctly}.
~ Squeeze 1 lemon’s worth of fresh juice into the mix, and save rind for zest at the end. Add more if you’d like!
~ Grate PR into Vitamix, add fresh cracked S&P to taste & add walnuts last.
~ Place blender on the lowest setting you can use while still getting everything to move together and while the blender is on, slowly drizzle in your EVOO. {If you’re more comfortable, add some OO in, blend a little, stop, add more OO and repeat as many times is as needed to gain desired consistency. } I look for a smooth pesto, perhaps you’d prefer more texture.
~ Taste it! Smell it, look at its consistency. What’s missing? Add that. Once finished, plate and drizzle just a little bit of EVOO over top for a glisten. Grate fresh lemon zest and enjoy!
~. This is a base, get creative! Thinking of the possibilities makes me hungry. Make it your own. And most importantly, have fun! Cheers to YOUR health, for 100 years! Salud, chindon!