Home » Kitchen Tips » Cooking Tips » Basic Sage Pesto {Best Way to Preserve Sage}

Basic Sage Pesto {Best Way to Preserve Sage}

by Shirley
Published: Last Updated on
basic sage pesto {best way to preserve sage}

Sage is an extraordinary superfood herb loaded with vitamins, minerals and antioxidants. Basic sage pesto made of fresh sage, organic virgin olive oil and a bit of Himalayan pink salt is an excellent way of preserving sage. Package them in individual small portions, and then store in the freezer to use in the next 6-8 months.

Basic Sage Pesto packaged into small portions

Sage is a perennial herb

Sage is a common herb in various cuisines around the world. It has a very strong earthy flavor, perhaps the reason why it is usually used in small quantities.

We added sage to our backyard herb garden this year, and it grows pretty well. I heard they are perennial in Chicago area just like parsley, leek and cilantro, and look forward to welcoming them back next spring.

sage growing in our backyard garden
sage growing in our backyard garden

Sage is a powerful superfood herb

This silvery green herb is undoubtedly a superfood herb offering incredible health benefits. Sage is rich in vitamins such as Vitamin K, Vitamin B6 and minerals such as calcium, manganese, and iron.

In addition, Sage contains many essential antioxidants that can help lower risk of cancer and improve cognitive functions. People also believe that sage can help lower both total cholesterol, “bad” LDL cholesterol, but increase “good” HDL cholesterol.

What an impressive nutritious herb!

sage growing in our backyard garden

What is Sage Pesto?

For those who haven’t heard of pesto, it is an Italian originated, refreshingly tasty bright green sauce made of fresh green herbs, virgin olive oil, spices, and more.

In fact, “Pesto” means “to crush” in the local language. This implies that in the old-time and way before food processor, people simply used mortar and pestle to make this popular green sauce.

You can use all kinds of green herbs to make pesto. One of my early spring favorite one is my garden fresh Leek Parsley Pesto.

Whenever I harvest tons of sage, I make this basic sage pesto to preserve the harvest so that I can enjoy this superfood herb throughout the year.

What are some of the wonderful ways of using this basic sage pesto?

Foremost, I use this to pair with Oats Porridge or Eight Treasure Porridge.

Both porridges are extremely nutritious. Oats porridge is also amazing DASH {Dietary Approach to Stop Hypertension}. Use a tablespoonful of this basic sage pesto for a bowl of porridge, perfectly to spice up the otherwise bland porridge.

Steel-Cut Oats Porridge with Chia and Flaxseed with maca, chlorella and wheatgrass powder toppings

Second, it is perfect to use as a dressing for a garden pasta salad

This garden pasta salad is a must have, especially during the summer. I like to add a tablespoonful of homemade pesto to enhance the flavor and look of it.

Vegan Pasta Salad with Pesto and Spanish Olives
Vegan Pasta Salad with Pesto and Spanish Olives

Last, you can turn the basic sage pesto to a loaded sage pesto sauce by adding additional ingredients

Parsley, garlic, nuts such as walnut or pistachios, and Parmesan cheese all go well with sage pesto. A splash of freshly squeezed lemon juice adds the refreshing taste.

Pesto is great to serve as a vegetable dipping sauce, such as cauliflower with pesto.

Cauliflower and Pesto {Tasty Vegan Gluten-Free}
Cauliflower and Pesto {Tasty Vegan Gluten-Free}
basic sage pesto {best way to preserve sage}

Basic Sage Pesto {Best Way to Preserve Sage}

Yield: 24 servings
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 10 minutes
Total Time: 15 minutes

Basic sage pesto made of fresh sage, organic virgin olive oil and a bit of Himalayan pink salt is an excellent way of preserving sage. Package them in individual small portions, and then store in the freezer to use in the next 12 months.

Ingredients

  • 0.5 lb sage
  • 1/4 cup olive oil, extra virgin perferred
  • 1/4 tsp Himalayan pink salt

Instructions

  1. Gather all the ingredients. Wash and rinse sage, keep only the leaves and tender stems.
    Basic Sage Pesto Ingredients
  2. Fill the food processor half full with the sage, turn the speed to high briefly to chop the sage into coarse pieces.
    Chop sage in a food processor for sage pesto
  3. Remove the coarsely chopped sage using a mini silicone spatula, place them on a plate and set aside.
  4. Repeat #2 and #3 until you have processed all the sage.
  5. Add back all the coarsely chopped sage back to the food processor, add olive oil and salt, turn the speed to high briefly just to blend everything together. See notes.
    Freshly made basic sage pesto in the food processor
  6. Scoop 4-6 tablespoonful of basic sage pesto to each snack size ziplock bag, squeeze out the air and seal.
    Basic Sage Pesto packaged into small portions
  7. Add individual packages into a quarter-size freezer friendly ziplock bag, squeeze out the air, seal and label.
    basic sage pesto individually packaged for freezer
  8. Store the bag in the freezer to use for the next 8-12 months. Each time take out one individual packaged basic sage pesto and enjoy!

Notes

  • Do not over process the sage in the processor, only briefly to chop into small pieces. It is important to preserve the herb's flavor and taste.
  • This is especially true when you plan to turn this basic sage pesto into a loaded pesto. At that point, you will add additional ingredients and do additional processing.

Recommended Products

As an Amazon Associate, I earn a small amount of commission from the qualifying purchases.

Nutrition Information
Yield 24 servings Serving Size 1
Amount Per Serving Calories 43Total Fat 5gSaturated Fat 1gTrans Fat 0gUnsaturated Fat 4gCholesterol 0mgSodium 49mgCarbohydrates 0gFiber 0gSugar 0gProtein 0g

Nutrition calculation is provided by Nutritionix to the best knowledge per ingredients description and isn't always accurate.

Did you make this recipe?

Please leave a comment on the blog or share a photo on Pinterest

Leave a Comment

You may also like

This website uses cookies to improve your experience. We'll assume you're ok with this, but you can opt-out if you wish. Accept Read More

Skip to Recipe