Can you use frozen spinach in this recipe?

I personally have not tried it, but it should work in theory. If you attempt to substitute frozen spinach for fresh spinach, make sure it’s completely thawed and drained first AND that it was fresh spinach when it was frozen. If you bought a box of frozen spinach from the store, you’re probably fine here. However, if you stuck a bag of almost slimy spinach in the freezer to save it from the trash can, it’s a no-go. Slimy spinach simply tastes bad, and I don’t want you to waste your other ingredients.

How long does fresh spinach pesto last in the fridge?

You can store pesto spinach sauce in the refrigerator in an airtight container for up to 3 weeks, although it has the best flavor in the first 3-5 days.

Why is my spinach pesto bitter?

Older spinach can sometimes taste a little bit bitter, as can old olive oil. The lemon juice and zest help cut any bitterness. Plan to use your spinach up before it gets old to avoid this issue!

Can you make spinach pesto without nuts?

Yes, you can. You can try sunflower seeds or pumpkin seeds instead of pine nuts or cashews, or you can omit the nuts entirely. You’ll end up with a thinner spinach pesto in the end.

Easy 5-Minute Spinach Pesto | Avoid Food Waste! (+Video)

5 Minute Spinach Pesto

When you have a bag of spinach about to go bad, just whip up a batch of spinach pesto in just 5 minutes. It’s frugal, healthy, and fast! Add it to sandwiches or fresh pasta for an easy meal. Drizzle over homemade zoodles or homemade pizza!

Print Recipe

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5 from 3 reviews

Whip up a batch of this quick and easy spinach pesto to use up the spinach in your fridge (and because it’s so so yummy!). Spinach, cashews, lemons, and parmesan make a budget-friendly rich and vibrant sauce.

Author: Tiffany
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 0 minutes
Total Time: 5 minutes
Yield: about 20 ounces 1x
Category: Sauces & Condiments
Method: Blender
Cuisine: American

Ingredients

Scale

8 ounces spinach
¾ cup cashews (any kind)
2 garlic cloves
½ cup grated Parmesan cheese (about 2 oz)
2 lemons, juiced and zested, divided
½ – 1 tsp salt
¼ – ½ tsp pepper
½ cup quality olive oil

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Instructions

In a food processor or a blender (I used the Twister Jar in my Blendtec), add the olive oil and two handfuls of the spinach and blend. Add additional spinach in subsequent batches, blending after each addition.
Add the cashews, garlic cloves, the juice and zest of one lemon, ½ tsp salt, and ¼ tsp pepper. Blend.
Add the Parmesan cheese and blend. Taste and add additional salt, pepper, lemon juice and/or lemon zest as desired. I personally like the lemon flavor, so I end up adding the full amount of lemon juice, lemon zest, salt, and pepper.
Blend until all ingredients are incorporated well. Store in the refrigerator for up to 3 weeks.

Notes

If you attempt to substitute frozen spinach for fresh spinach, make sure it’s completely drained first AND that it was fresh spinach when it was frozen.
If you bought a box of spinach from the store, you’re probably fine here. However, if you stuck a bag of almost slimy spinach in the freezer in order to save it from the trash can, it’s a no-go.
You can use Parmesan rind instead of actual Parmesan cheese.
If you don’t buy Parmesan very often, shred whatever is left of the wedge and freeze it. Then you can pull out what you need when you need it, and you won’t throw any of it away.

Nutrition

Calories: 176

Find it online: https://dontwastethecrumbs.com/spinach-pesto/