Easy Cannabis-Infused Pesto » with Leaves or Oil

I’ve been growing cannabis for years, and the question I get asked most is: what do you do with all those fan leaves? The answer is this fresh homemade pesto, made fresh with fan leaves from my garden, or infused with oil, depending on what I’m after. I freeze it in ice cube trays and use it all year long. Let me show you how to do the same!

Why You Will Love This Recipe

Gosh, I love this recipe. Here’s what makes this so much better than just throwing basil and garlic in a food processor:

1. You use the entire plant. Every grower knows this feeling, you’ve nurtured this plant for months, and you don’t want to waste a single part. Fan leaves are usually trimmed off and discarded. Not in my garden. They’re the best part of the year for me.
2. You can preserve abundance. Cannabis season is intense. Between June and September in my zone 6B garden, there’s so much leaf material. This recipe lets me freeze abundance in ice cube trays. I literally pull one cube from my freezer every week for months, it’s like canning tomatoes, but for cannabis.
3. It’s flexible for your goals. Want raw leaves with THCA and CBDA (non-intoxicating compounds)? Use them fresh. Want THC effects? Use infused oil. Want something specific? I’ve included every method I’ve tried in years of experimenting. There’s no wrong choice here.
4. It’s nourishing in a way other edibles aren’t. From a nutrition standpoint (and as a registered dietitian, this matters to me), this is whole-plant material, healthy fats, and fresh herbs. You’re not just getting cannabinoids, you’re getting real food.

Now, let me show you exactly how I make it, step by step.

What You’ll Need

• chopped walnuts – toasted. Toasting brings out the nutty flavor and creates a richer, deeper pesto; alternatives include hemp seeds, pine nuts, sunflower seeds, or pumpkin seeds.
• minced garlic – fresh or pre-minced garlic will work
• parmesan cheese – freshly grated cheese is best
• fresh basil – fresh leaves, stems removed, lightly packed
• fan leaves: fan leaves are optional; if you do not use them, use 4 cups of basil leaves
• parsley – fresh leaves, stems removed, lightly packed
• white wine – optional but adds a delicious flavor
• lemon juice – freshly squeezed is best, but bottled is OK
• kosher salt
• ground black pepper
• crushed red pepper – optional, for heat and flavor
• extra-virgin olive oil – depending on your infusion preference, you can use traditional olive oil or cannabis-infused olive oil

Visual Step-by-Step Guide

• Step 1 – If you haven’t already, toast the walnuts.
• Step 2 – Add the toasted walnuts, minced garlic, and cheese to a food processor and pulse in 5-second intervals until all ingredients reach a fine consistency.
• Step 3 – Add the basil through crushed red pepper to the food processor. Turn the processor on medium speed and blend all ingredients for 60 seconds.
• Step 4 – Turn the food processor down to medium-low speed, and with the processor running, very slowly pour in the cannabis olive oil.
• Step 5 – Continue to blend for an additional 60 seconds or until all ingredients are broken down and well incorporated.

My Preferred Methods (Ranked by How I Actually Use Them)

Here’s the beautiful part about this recipe: there’s no “right way” to infuse. Over the years, I’ve tried every infusion method below.

Some work better in summer, some in winter. Some are for me, some are for sharing with community members who are new to edibles. Here’s what I’ve learned.

Raw Cannabis Leaves (My Summer Go-To) ☀️

This is what I make every week during growing season. It’s quick, fresh, and I freeze it immediately. Zero additional processing needed beyond harvesting and washing.

Fan leaves are the plant’s solar panels. They’re large, nutrient-dense, and full of THCA and CBDA, the raw cannabinoid acids with their own wellness benefits.

Unlike decarbed flower, you won’t feel intoxicated, but you’re getting whole-plant nutrition.

• How to use: Replace 1 cup of basil with 1 cup of loosely packed fan leaves or trim. Wash them well first, remove long stems. You can double the amount if you have plenty of leaf material.

Second Choice: Infused Oil (My Winter Go-To)

Once my raw harvest runs out, I switch to cannabis-infused olive oil. I usually make this with leftover trim from flower season. It’s shelf-stable, tastes closer to my fresh summer batch than anything else, and I can control the dosing.

Extra-virgin olive oil works best here, it has the flavor profile that pesto needs. You can also use MCT oil or CBD oil.

• How to use: Simply substitute the olive oil in the recipe with your infused version. Done.

For Guests or Testing: Bliss MCT Oil

When I’m making pesto for people in my life who are new to edibles, I use my Bliss MCT oil for the infusion. It’s lab-tested, the dosing is predictable, and it takes the guesswork out. This is how I test recipes before sharing them widely.

Other Options (When I Have Material to Use Up)

• Leftover Cannabis Pulp: If you make cannabutter or coconut oil at home, save the leftover pulp. It’s less potent than your first infusion, but it works. Use ¼–½ cup and add it in step 1.
• Decarbed Flower or Kief: Decarb your flower, grind it to a fine powder, and add it in step 2. Kief is more potent, so start with ½ gram and adjust to your tolerance. (You’ll need to decarb it first to activate the cannabinoids.)
• Cannabis Concentrates: If you have access to distillate, shatter, wax, FECO, or RSO, they all work. Warm gently and mix into the olive oil before adding to the recipe. Start with 1ml or 1 gram, concentrates are potent.

☀️ The Simple Rule: There’s no wrong choice here. Pick what you have access to, what fits your goals, and what you’re comfortable with. That’s what I do.