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This vegan basil pesto is creamy, herby, and salty with that classic ‘cheesy’ tang. It’s ready in just 5 minutes and tastes amazing on pasta, orzo, rice, paninis and more.
If you’re a fan of basil pesto, you’ll also love this flavor-packed sun-dried tomato pesto!
If you’re like me and you have basil in your garden, then you know that this time of year means lots of fresh, homemade pesto. Pesto has always been a favorite pasta sauce for me, so naturally, it was one of the first things I learned to make vegan when I cut out dairy 10 years ago.
Ingredients
Luckily, most of the ingredients in pesto are naturally vegan-friendly. To make dairy free pesto, you really only need to make a swap for the parmesan cheese. Below are all the ingredients you’ll need in order to make this homemade vegan pesto.
- Fresh Basil: Try to pick basil that is young, or smaller leaves as they tend to be less bitter.
- Extra Virgin Olive Oil: Be sure your olive oil is good quality as it adds so much flavor.
- Garlic: A little goes a long way.
- Toasted Pine Nuts: See below for substitutions
- Vegan Parmesan: My favorite is by Violife
- Salt + Pepper
Substitutes for Pine Nuts in Pesto
Let’s face it…pine nuts are expensive. And people don’t always have them on hand. I’ve made this vegan pesto without pine nuts before and had it turn out great!
Of course, pine nuts give a unique flavor to the pesto but it will be equally as delicious if you sub in another type of nut. Below are some of my favorite substitutions for pine nuts in this recipe:
Vegan Parmesan
While you don’t technically need vegan parmesan in this recipe, it adds so much flavor and really makes this the best vegan pesto possible.
Violife makes the best vegan parmesan cheese, in my opinion. It comes in a wedge that you can grate yourself for fresh dairy free parmesan shreds. I buy this vegan parm at Whole Foods, usually when it goes on sale. It looks like you can also order it directly on Violife’s website. While I’ve never done this, it does seem pretty convenient.
If you don’t plan on using vegan parmesan, you’ll want to add more salt than the recipe calls for. The vegan parm adds a good amount of saltiness, so just be sure to compensate for that!
How to Make Vegan Pesto
To make this easy vegan pesto, a food processor is highly recommended. If you don’t have a food processor you could use a mortar and pestle but it will take a long time to blend everything by hand. I don’t recommend making this in a blender, as the pesto will lose all of its texture.
To make the pesto, you’ll follow the steps below:
- First, toast your pine nuts on low heat for 3-5 minutes until they are golden brown on all sides.
- Add the basil, garlic, and pine nuts to the food processor. Pulse until they’re roughly chopped.
- Slowly start drizzling in the olive oil and continue blending. The mixture should start to come together into a sauce consistency.
- Add the vegan parm, salt and pepper. Be sure to taste the pesto and add any more salt to taste!
Once it’s ready you can use it as a sauce for your favorite pasta. You can even use it to make Pesto Rice!
Tips & Tricks
If you can’t find vegan parmesan or choose not to include it in the recipe, you can add a tablespoon of nutritional yeast or about 1/4 teaspoon of salt in its place.
pine nuts give a unique flavor to the pesto but it will be equally as delicious if you sub in another type of nut.
Almonds: because almonds are harder than pine nuts, the pesto may be chunkier.
Walnuts: walnuts are probably the closest substitution for pine nuts because their texture is similar. Cashews: this will definitely give the pesto a creamier consistency.
Unfortunately, to make this classic vegan basil pesto, there’s no good substitution for fresh basil. I don’t recommend using dried basil in this recipe. However, I do have a recipe for spinach pesto which is also very tasty.
More Vegan Sauces
Classic Vegan Basil Pesto
Rate this RecipeIngredients
- 3 cups fresh basil, loosely packed
- 1 small clove garlic, ~2g, roughly chopped
- ¼ tsp fine table salt, plus more to taste
- ⅓ cup toasted pine nuts
- ½ cup grated vegan parmesan, like Violife
- ⅛ tsp fresh ground black pepper
- ⅓ cup extra virgin olive oil, high quality
Instructions
- Add all the ingredients except the olive oil to the food processor. Pulse until they're roughly chopped. Scrape down the sides as needed.3 cups fresh basil, 1 small clove garlic, ¼ tsp fine table salt, ⅓ cup toasted pine nuts , ½ cup grated vegan parmesan, ⅛ tsp fresh ground black pepper
- Slowly start drizzling in the olive oil while the food processor is running. The mixture should start to come together into a sauce consistency.⅓ cup extra virgin olive oil
- Taste the pesto and add any more salt as desired. Makes ~1 cup (240g). Store in an airtight container in the fridge.
Recipe notes
- Substitute 1 tbsp nutritional yeast + salt to taste for the vegan parmesan.
- Substitute toasted almonds, walnuts, or cashews for the pine nuts.
- Toast your pine nuts on low heat for 3-5 minutes until they are golden brown on all sides. Watch them closely since they burn easily.
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Did You Make This Vegan Pesto?
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