Easy Dairy Free Pesto Recipe
This Dairy Free Pesto is so rich and full of flavour no-one will even realise the cheese is missing. Truly! Your cheese loving friends will be none the wiser because this pesto still has that lovely cheesy taste.
In This Article
Nutritional Benefits
A fridge full of jars of homemade dips and sauces is a wonderful thing. These little gems are absolutely brimming with nutrients and adding a dollop or two to your meals adds much flavour and nourishment.
The key ingredient in this pesto is basil. Fresh basil is a nutrient‐rich herb including vitamins and minerals such as vitamin C, calcium, magnesium, and potassium (1,2). It’s also a good source of β-carotene (2), a potent antioxidant that offers numerous health benefits such as lowering the risk of several chronic diseases, supporting immune function, and enhancing eye health (3).
Other prominent ingredients with plenty of benefits are the miso, garlic and nutritional yeast. The miso provides vitamins like E, K and B6, along with minerals like magnesium and calcium (4,5) Garlic contains high levels of minerals, vitamins A and C and B-complex vitamins in addition to being anti-inflammatory and bolstering gut health (6). The nutritional yeast is also providing added B vitamins to the mix, especially B12 (7).
Ingredients – What You’ll Need To Make This Recipe
Olive oil is one of the predominant flavours in this recipe and as such, it’s important to choose a good one. Any favoured brand will be fine but always go for an extra virgin. This type of olive oil is not processed and is highest in antioxidant activity, with the added benefit of being anti-inflammatory too (8). It’s also delicious! No amount of garlic is going to hide a sub-standard olive oil in this sauce, so choose wisely.
- Basil – The number one ingredient. Bright green, plump looking leaves with a strong aroma is perfect for this pesto.
- Olive oil – As mentioned above, go for an extra virgin olive oil for the added health benefits and clean, crisp taste.
- Pine nuts – These help to make this pesto luscious and creamy.
- Nutritional Yeast – The secret ingredient that gives this dairy free pesto its cheesy flavour. Nutritional yeast is now widely available in most supermarkets and usually found in the health food aisle.
- White / Shiro miso – This gives sweetness, which is usually provided by the cheeses in the traditional recipe.
- Garlic – Adds sweetness and pungency to the sauce.
- Salt – Helps to enhance the flavour of the other ingredients.
This simple sauce is rich in nutrients and will go with just about everything. It’s great mixed through pasta, dolloped onto eggs, it’s divine when spread on toast and is delicious straight out of the jar!
How To Make This Dairy Free Pesto
Not having cheese in this recipe does affect the texture slightly. It can result in a pesto that’s pasty smooth. To avoid this, blend until just combined.
- Remove the basil leaves from the stems then wash and pat dry.
- Add the garlic, miso, pine nuts and a handful of basil leaves to a food processor and blend on high for a few seconds.
- Scrape down the sides of the blender then add the nutritional yeast, another big handful of basil, half the olive oil, and the salt. Blend again to combine.
- Add the remaining basil and olive oil and blend a final time to ensure all ingredients are thoroughly combined.
- Pour into a jar and keep in the fridge. Will keep for 7 – 10 days.
- Enjoy over pasta, use as a dip, dollop on roast vegetables or poached eggs.
This will keep in the fridge for 7 – 10 days or can also be frozen. Be sure to drizzle a bit of olive oil over the top of the pesto each time you take some from the jar. This ensures it will stay fresh and a beautiful shade of bright green.
Substitutions And Variations
If you would prefer to toss all the ingredients in at once and blend to make it even easier you can absolutely do this. However, I think the texture is much nicer and far more even if the basil and oil are added in stages.
Tips For Success With This Recipe
Not sure what to pair with this pesto? Pesto can be enjoyed with just about anything. You can use it as a pasta sauce as I’ve done here. Dip Polenta Chips in it, have it with some Chickpea Flatbread or spread it over this delicious Pesto Crusted Salmon.
Storing/Freezing/Make Ahead
Pour into a jar and keep in the fridge for 7 – 10 days. Also, ensure you drizzle a bit of olive oil over the top of the pesto each time you take some from the jar. This helps it stay fresh and retain its beautiful shade of bright green.
This pesto can also be frozen. To do this line a small container that has a lid with baking paper. Spread the pesto out into a thin layer (~ 1/2cm or 1/4 of an inch) over the paper, put the lid on the container and keep in the freezer. When you want to use some, just break off a piece and allow it to thaw to room temperature.
FAQ
Most store-bought traditional-style pesto will contain dairy. Checking the label or buying a vegan pesto is the only way to ensure it doesn’t.
Bitterness can result from the olive oil chosen, which is why selecting an oil you know, and love is important. It can also occur from heating the pesto at high heat. Basil contains volatile oils that degrade when heated. This produces muted flavours and a sour, somewhat bitter taste. Pesto is best used raw and mixed through warm foods. This helps to retain both its nutrients and flavour.
Historically, recipes for pesto or pesto-style sauces were made with a variety of ingredients, many even without basil. Some of the earliest found were in the late 19th Century. This changed in the post war period and the pesto we know today became the standard recipe. As outlined in the post above though, an actual Ligurian pesto must contain certain DOP ingredients to be called Pesto Genovese.
More Sauces, Dips And Spreads To Enjoy
If you try this recipe, I’d love to know. Leave a comment, rate it, and remember to tag @wholenaturalkitchen in your pics or reels on Instagram, Facebook or TikTok!
Easy Dairy Free Pesto Recipe
Equipment
- 1 Blender
Ingredients
- 1 large bunch of basil leaves only, roughly 2 cups
- 1-2 cloves garlic
- ½ cup nutritional yeast
- ½ cup olive oil
- ¼ cup pine nuts
- 1 tsp shiro (white) miso
- ¼ tsp salt
Instructions
- Remove the basil leaves from the stems then wash and pat dry.
- Add the garlic, miso, pine nuts and a handful of basil leaves to a food processor and blend on high for a few seconds.
- Scrape down the sides of the blender then add the nutritional yeast, another big handful of basil, half the olive oil, and the salt. Blend again to combine.
- Add the remaining basil and olive oil then blend one last time to ensure all ingredients are thoroughly combined.
- Pour into a jar and keep in the fridge. Will keep for 7 – 10 days. Also, ensure you drizzle a bit of olive oil over the top of the pesto each time you take some from the jar. This helps it stay fresh and retain its beautiful shade of bright green.
- Enjoy over pasta, use as a dip, dollop on roast vegetables or poached eggs.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
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Gabby Campbell
Gabby is a degree qualified Naturopath/Nutritionist (BHSc Nat) with a love of all whole foods. She started her Naturopathic career in clinical practice before making the move to recipe development and online education – a result of wanting to combat the misinformation that abounds on the internet about food and health. Whole Natural Kitchen aims to transform the way you think about healthy eating by helping you embrace an abundance of nutritious foods while leaving the health fads behind. MORE ABOUT GABBY
this pesto looks so amazing! can’t wait to test this recipe out! Thanks
Thanks, Imsen! I hope you enjoy it.
finally found a delicious Dairy Free Pesto that doesn’t break apart and is still creamy. We really enjoyed this with our pasta and shrimps.
So glad to hear that Nancy!
Loved the additions of miso and yeast flakes. I have made a dairy-free pesto before but by simply omitting the cheese. Adding these two ingredients makes up for the lost cheesy, umami flavour you would get from the Parmesan. I would recommend everyone to absolutely try and use those. Luckily I had some in the kitchen already and with all the basil harvest I have right now, this was the perfect recipe to find!
They definitely make a big difference Irena, so happy to hear you enjoyed it.
I have yet to find a dairy free pesto! My family will definitely be able to enjoy this! Thanks for sharing!
My pleasure Whitney!
Husband can’t have lactose anymore so grateful for alterations like this one!
I honestly don’t think you miss the dairy in this version! Hope he enjoys it.
Oh wow! This pesto looks wonderful with that vibrant color. I love how you made it dairy free.
Thanks, Tara!