Healthy Pesto Sauce Recipes

During the spring and early summer when garlic scapes are plentiful at farmers' markets and farmstands, this healthy garlic scape pesto recipe is a great way to enjoy their gorgeous garlicky flavor for weeks. Garlic scapes are the green, spiral-shaped sprouts that appear on the top of garlic plants in the spring. Regular garlic cloves can be used as a substitute for garlic scapes. Try the pesto with pasta, stir-fries, grilled fish, poultry or steaks or add it to scrambled eggs, soup or pasta sauces.

A cross between an enchilada sauce and mole, this pesto pairs well with grilled meat or vegetables.

In a twist on classic pesto, this healthy recipe uses less oil than a traditional basil pesto, includes tomatoes and subs almonds for pine nuts. Try it tossed with whole-wheat pasta or slathered over grilled chicken or fish.

This basil and arugula pesto is ready in five minutes and perfect on bruschetta, sandwiches or pasta.

Sweet beets, peppery arugula and toasted pecans are blended together in this dairy-free, healthy pesto recipe. Try it spread on crostini or spooned over grilled chicken or pork.

With this easy tomato salad, more is more--so if you want, go wild with an outrageous selection of tomatoes. Look for big gnarly tomatoes, plum-shaped varieties, smooth or peach-fuzzed skins, zebra stripes, not to mention the miniatures at the summer farmers' market. All the visual variation means you'll get a range of flavors as well.

Try this quick, full-flavored sun-dried tomato pesto with roasted vegetables or as a sandwich spread.

Fresh chiles and lime juice give this herb-almond pesto a pleasant kick. Serve with baked tortilla chips or use to top burgers or fish.

Who says all pestos have to be made with basil and pine nuts? This nut- and garlic-free pesto recipe will prove that all pestos are not equal. Sweet peas, parsley, basil and mint are blended with Parmesan cheese and a mild shallot, resulting in a fresh, tasty sauce that can be served with vegetables or pasta, or even used as a sandwich spread.

This versatile pesto can be tossed with pasta for a quick supper or spread on crostini for a sophisticated appetizer.

This pesto highlights the basil and pine nuts first and melds them together with just the right amount of freshly grated cheese and extra-virgin olive oil. Try it instead of red sauce on pizza or tossed with warm pasta.

A creamy pesto sauce turns this simple pasta salad into a delightful dinner. Adding broccoli to the pasta cooking water just before the pasta is done is a convenient way to briefly cook it so that it turns a vivid shade of green and softens slightly.

This healthy summer dinner subs zoodles for pasta to help use up your zucchini bounty--as well as slash calories and carbs. Once the spiralized zucchini has time to soak up the herby pesto sauce, this chicken and pesto pasta makes particularly good leftovers.

Serve this nutty, spicy pesto with Vegetarian Enchiladas, Blueberry-Beef Burgers, black beans, grilled chicken or fish.

Try this delicious pesto on grilled fish or burgers.