How To Make Pea Pesto With Ricotta Video

This bright, fresh pesto will put a spring in your step

Spring, the greenest season of the year, is the perfect time to play around with pesto recipes, diving beyond the usual basil-and-pine nut combo and into the vast array of pesto-friendly herbs and greens that are nothing short of revelatory. So we couldn't help but showcase Melissa Clark's creative take on this vibrant, spreadable classic that combines basil with mint and lots of peas (see the recipe).

By leaving behind earthy nuts, Clark's version retains its fresh and bright flavors while also adding a surprising zing from mint to give the peas extra pep. Swirled into a creamy dollop of fresh ricotta and piled onto crispy crostini, it's so satisfyingly veg heavy you could honestly make a meal out of it.

Though the dish reads as quintessentially spring, Clark's recipe calls for frozen peas, meaning you can make this crowd-pleaser year-round. But if you do get your hands on delicious farm-fresh peas, feel free to swap them in for the frozen stuff (just make sure to blanch before blitzing them in the food processor).

Get more spring pesto recipes:
- Martha's Fresh Spring Pesto
Orecchiette with Sausage and Pesto
- Roasted Cauliflower with 5-Herb Pesto