Easy Vegan Pesto (Quick + Delicious)
This easy vegan pesto is creamy, cheesy, and garlicky, and can be thrown together in a matter of minutes. It’s perfect for pasta, pizza, toast, salad dressings, marinades, and so much more.
Ingredients
- 3 cups (2 oz / 60 g) fresh basil
- 3 large cloves garlic, peeled
- 4 tablespoons pine nuts
- 4-5 tablespoons nutritional yeast
- 1 green chilli, top removed (optional)
- Juice of 1 lemon (if you like lemon, include some zest)
- 3-4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- 4-6 tablespoons water (plus more if needed)
- Salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Add all the ingredients (except the water) to a food processor and blend into a paste. You may need to stop once or twice to scrape down the sides with a spatula or spoon.
- Add the water a little at a time and blend to loosen up the paste. The pesto should be thick, but should also fall off a spoon quite easily.
- Adjust the seasoning to taste and you're good to go.
Notes
Serving suggestions: This pesto is perfect when mixed through freshly cooked pasta such as linguine or spaghetti. To make an even creamier sauce, combine the pesto with a little homemade cashew cream.
It's also great for spreading on toast, adding to salad dressings, marinating other ingredients, or mixing through hummus.
Nuts: You can either omit the pine nuts and enjoy the pesto as a thinner sauce, or replace them with your favourite plant seeds, such as sunflower, pumpkin, or hemp.
Nutritional yeast: You can simply omit the nutritional yeast or use a vegan parmesan cheese. If you want to replicate the sharp flavour of dairy parmesan, you could try adding a tablespoon of vegan Dijon mustard or cider vinegar.
Basil: You could swap out some or all of the basil for other greens such as parsley, coriander, spinach, kale, watercress, rocket, or mixed salad leaves.
Chilli: If you don't like heat, skip the chilli. I just like the extra zing it adds.
Less fat: Extra-virgin olive oil is a key ingredient in a good pesto. However, if you want to make it healthier you could swap out the oil for extra water.
Storage: You can store this pesto in the fridge for up to a week or freezer for up to six months.
If you liked this recipe, you might also enjoy:
- Vegan Parmesan
- Easy Cheesy Pasta Sauce
- 12-Minute Tomato and Basil Pasta
- Vegan Spaghetti Bolognese
- Vegan Pancetta
- Vegan Pasta Puttanesca
- Creamy Vegan Mushroom and Leek Tagliatelle
- Vegan Stewed Pepper Pasta
- Vegan Pea and Mint Risotto
Nutrition
Calories: 79kcalCarbohydrates: 3gProtein: 3gFat: 6gSaturated Fat: 1gSodium: 16mgPotassium: 105mgFiber: 1gSugar: 1gVitamin A: 317IUVitamin C: 2mgCalcium: 12mgIron: 1mg
Nutrition Facts
Easy Vegan Pesto (Quick + Delicious)
Amount Per Serving
Calories 79
Calories from Fat 54
% Daily Value*
Fat 6g9%
Saturated Fat 1g6%
Sodium 16mg1%
Potassium 105mg3%
Carbohydrates 3g1%
Fiber 1g4%
Sugar 1g1%
Protein 3g6%
Vitamin A 317IU6%
Vitamin C 2mg2%
Calcium 12mg1%
Iron 1mg6%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
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