Flavourful and bright, pesto has the power to liven up vegetables, pizza, potatoes, pasta and even fish

Pesto mussels

Pesto goes amazingly well with grilled steak, lamb chops, chicken, and even fish, so you don't have to worry about spicing or marinating your meat. You can also season meatloaf or meatballs with pesto. Mix up a small knob of butter, drizzle of cream, two tablespoons of Parmesan cheese and some pesto and you’ll have yourself a luxurious sauce to be served with cooked shrimp or crab meat. Alternatively, saute four sliced garlic cloves in a pot with olive oil until golden, for about two minutes.

Mussels (defrosted) AED56 per kg

Add a kilogram of fresh mussels, a mug full of water; cover and cook until the mussels open, usually about four minutes. Open the mussels and smear pesto across the top for a new twist on the classic seafood dish.

Loaded sweet potato

Besides its indescribable deliciousness, pesto has multiple health benefits. Don’t look at the nutrition label and only see the calorie count as pesto is high in Vitamin A, Vitamin C, calcium and iron. The calories come from the unsaturated fats, the “healthy fats” which support heart health. Whizz up this delicious, herby Italian-style sauce in under 15 minutes using just five ingredients. Put 50g toasted pine nuts, 80g basil, 50g Parmesan, 150ml olive oil, 2 garlic cloves, in a food processor and blitz until smooth.

Try it on top of baked, sweet potato quarters and you won’t look back. We topped ours with a slice of goat cheese and a fresh tomato.

Pesto hummus

In its most basic form, pesto consists of basil, garlic and olive oil. You can also get different variations such as red pepper, with pine nuts or one of our favs, sundried tomato. Serve chips and crudites with this tasty pesto hummus mix at your next barbecue or get together. Mix a few generous tablespoons of pesto (green or red) with 230g of fresh hummus from Choithrams.com. Top with chopped mint leaves, toasted pine nuts and a dash of paprika for a heart-healthy Mediterranean dish.

Don't have time to make your own pesto? Don't worry, pick up a jar of Jamie Oliver's herb pesto sauce and you're good to go. Other brands stocked at Choithrams.com include Tesco Finest, Sacla, Leggo's, Wingreen's, Rana and locally produced Goodness Foods. Check out the full range here.