If you’re anything like me, you sometimes buy a random ingredient to make one recipe you saw on TikTok, and then the tub of tzatziki or chimichurri sits in your fridge going bad. Pesto is one of those grocery items; I love to grab a little container in the refrigerated section and use it for pasta salad, but I never seem to make it through the whole thing before it expires. Whether you make your own or buy it premade, these interesting pesto dishes will help you use up the entire batch for once.
Pesto Orzo Pasta Salad
If you haven’t made a pesto-based pasta salad at home before, I recommend you start there to use up a good amount of pesto. All The Healthy Things’ recipe is orzo-based and loaded with lots of crunch from pine nuts, bell peppers, and cucumber. This is a desk lunch extraordinaire.
Creamy Pesto Chicken Skillet
Princess Pinky Girl’s pesto chicken skillet is honestly what I want for dinner most nights after a long day. It’s ready in 25 minutes, requires precious few ingredients, and is both high in protein and satisfying to the soul (mmm, cheesy pasta).
Kale Pesto Avocado Grilled Cheese
Speaking of easy, cheesy, and satisfying, Damn Delicious’ pesto, kale, and avocado grilled cheese is honestly a perfect girl dinner for those nights you actually get to make something you want without worrying about whether your kids will eat it. She made hers in a waffle iron, but you could definitely use ye olde skillet.
Baked Brie Cheese With Sundried Tomatoes & Pesto
Biscuits & Burlap’s baked brie with pesto looks like the dreamiest appetizer ever. You could proudly pop this in the center of a charcuterie board to take to any gathering, or make one all for yourself before you sit down to binge your new favorite show (Off Campus, anyone?).
Sheet Pan Pesto Salmon Dinner
It never would have occurred to me to top my salmon with pesto, but Family Fresh Meals’ recipe has inspired me to try it. This sheet pan recipe yields fork-tender, flaky salmon with roasted onions and tomatoes in under 30 minutes. Pop it over some pasta or rice and call it good.
Roasted Carrots With Carrot Top Pesto
A Beautiful Plate’s roasted carrots with pesto would be an impressive side dish at any holiday meal. Her recipe teaches you how to make carrot top pesto from the leaves of your fresh carrots, which is surprisingly easy. All in all, you’re looking at 15 minutes of prep for a very delicious result.
Pesto Eggs
Pesto for breakfast? Never would have thought of that. Feel Good Foodie’s pesto eggs on toast are a super simple and easy way to use up your pesto and make a weekday breakfast feel a little bit more special. The addition of a little ricotta makes these sound so good.
White Chicken Lasagna Roll-Ups
Averie Cooks’ white chicken lasagna roll-ups look absolutely divine. It’s a little more involved, taking about 45 minutes of prep and 45 minutes in the oven, so save this recipe for a weekend night when you want to make a big batch of something insanely yummy.
Kale, White Bean, & Pesto Salad
Every bougie recipe website is constantly posting something involving white beans. This salad from Budget Bytes is an easy, affordable way to try them out while using up some pesto. All it takes is six ingredients and 15 to 20 minutes — sign me up.
Chicken Pesto Sandwich
How often we forget the humble sandwich. Pesto makes a perfect spread, as exhibited by Damn Delicious’ chicken pesto sandwich recipe. I could see making this with leftover or rotisserie chicken as a quick lunch or dinner option, one that’s quick and tasty enough to become a permanent part of the rotation.
Kale Pesto Pizza
Any dish that’s described as “garlicky and ridiculously delicious” is an automatic yes. Jessica in the Kitchen will walk you through making this kale and pesto pizza at home, with a little added crunch from fresh pistachios. The flavor combos will make you feel like you ordered a restaurant flatbread straight to your kitchen table.
Did pesto just become a refrigerator staple? I think so.
