Artificial Flavors Free Basil-Pesto Spinach Salad
Fresh, vibrant, and built entirely from whole ingredients you can actually recognize, this spinach salad is the kind of dish that makes you feel good about what you're eating. The pesto comes together in a food processor using packed fresh basil, garlic, and tiger nuts — a clever swap that keeps things completely free of anything synthetic or artificially flavored. Extra-virgin olive oil gets streamed in until the sauce is silky and emulsified, then a hit of lemon juice and a pinch of turmeric round it out with brightness and warmth. Tossed over crisp baby spinach, cool cucumber half-moons, and peppery radishes, the result is a salad that tastes layered and intentional without a single shortcut ingredient in sight. Bottled dressings and store-bought pestos are notorious for hiding artificial flavoring agents, so making your own from scratch is genuinely the easiest way to sidestep that concern entirely. Serve it right away with extra lemon wedges for a squeeze of fresh acidity, and don't skip the torn basil on top — it takes the whole bowl to another level.
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Learn more →Ingredients
4 servings
For the pesto
- 2 cups fresh basil leaves, packed
- ⅓ cup tiger nuts, roughly chopped
- 2 cloves garlic, peeled
- ½ cup extra-virgin olive oil
- 2 tbsp lemon juice
- ¼ tsp fine sea salt
- ¼ tsp ground turmeric
For the salad
- 6 oz baby spinach (about 6 packed cups)
- 4 radishes, thinly sliced
- 1 cup cucumber, thinly sliced into half-moons
For serving
- ¼ cup fresh basil leaves, torn (optional)
- lemon wedges, for serving (optional)
Instructions
- 1
Combine the basil, tiger nuts, and garlic in a food processor and pulse 8–10 times until the mixture is coarsely ground and no large pieces remain.
- 2
With the processor running, stream in the olive oil in a slow, steady pour until the pesto is smooth and emulsified, about 30 seconds. Scrape down the sides, then add the lemon juice, salt, and turmeric. Pulse 3–4 more times until fully incorporated. Taste and adjust salt.
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