This easy, six ingredient, Vegan Pesto Recipe is made with cashews instead of the traditional pine nuts. The buttery texture of the cashews add to the creaminess of the pesto, giving it a rich taste without the addition of parmesan cheese. I also add spinach to this recipe to round out the flavor, add some more greens, and save on the expense of buying so much basil :) Because it is summertime, I was able to use fresh basil from my garden. While basil is often found in a lot of DIY herb growing starter kits, grown in little jars inside your home, it actually does best planted outside in the ground. I was able to grow a row of basil in our garden this year, and it is flourishing! When it starts to flower, just pluck the buds to delay it from going to seed. This will help you to get more basil later into the growing season.
Vegan Cashew Pesto
Yields 1/2 pint of pesto
- 1/2 cup fresh basil
- 1/2 cup raw cashews
- 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
- 1 clove of garlic
- 2 cups fresh spinach
- 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
- In a food processor, Add the basil, cashews, olive oil, and garlic. Pulse until the cashews are pulverized into tiny pieces, the texture of coarse salt.
- Next, add the spinach and puree until smooth.
- Season to taste with the sea salt, I typically like about 1/2 teaspoon.
- Serve on pasta, sandwiches, polenta, pizza, or whatever your heart desires!
Vegan Cashew Pesto served with gluten-free pasta, Italian sausage, tomatoes, and kalamata olives