Creamy Vegan Pesto
Creamy, fresh, simple and tasty. So who needs Parmesan cheese anyways? Not me. This dairy-free pesto is simply delicious. The pesto is not visibly oily and it has a really creamy texture. I would actually call this Pesto Cream. So, this is not your classic recipe for pesto.
It is a really easy recipe with only a handful of ingredients. With the help of your food processor you can have it ready in under 15 minutes (just remember to soak the cashew nuts in water for at least two hours before you thrown them in your mixer).
This pesto is perfect for breakfast or lunch as a spread on bread or crispbread. Try making this delicious sesame crispbread recipe and serve them up with this pesto and sweet cherry tomatoes. It tastes absolutely divine!
If you want to make pesto to serve as a pasta sauce I would recommend this vegan pesto recipe made with nutritional yeast and fresh basil instead. This pesto recipe is more oily, and therefore goes better with pasta.
This recipe gives you quite a big batch of pesto, so if you are making it just for you you can cut the recipe in half. Store the pesto in an airtight container, like a glass jar, somewhere cool.
I hope you feel inspired to make this the next time you are craving pesto. If you make it I would love to hear from you, please write a comment to let me know what you thought of it. If you snap a picture, tag me on instagram @by.linaelisabeth – I look forward to seeing how it turns out!
Creamy Pesto
Ingredients
- 150 g raw cashew nuts soaked in water for 2-3 hours
- 50 g pine nuts pan roast
- 100 g fresh basil (approximately 2 store bought plants)
- 1 1/2 lemon (juice)
- 3 cloves garlic
- 100 ml extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 tsp sea salt
Instructions
- Soak the cashew nuts in room temperature water for 2-3 hours, make sure all cashews are covered by water while soaking. Then drain (remove water).Soaking the cashew nuts in water for 2-3 hours makes them softer and is so important for getting that creamy texture.
- Lightly roast the pine nuts in a dry frying pan on low-medium heat until golden brown, this brings out the nutty flavor. Make sure to "shake the pan" frequently. When the pine nuts are done place them in a small cup or similar.
- Mix all the ingredients, including the cashew nuts and pine nuts, in your nutriblender/mixer until creamy. Note that you may have to remove the lid and stir a couple of times to ensure that all ingredients are mixed and that you achieve that super creamy texture.Using fresh herbs is an absolute must. You can use the stems of the plant as well, not just the fresh basil leaves. Everything is going in the mixer so there is no need to let anything go to waste. Make sure to save a beautiful looking basil leave or two for garnishing.The fresh lemon juice adds a lot of freshness to the pesto.
