Brazil Nut Free Vegan Basil Pesto with Lemon Zest
This bright, herby pesto is everything a classic sauce should be — fragrant, rich, and layered with flavor — with a sunny lift from fresh lemon zest and juice that makes it taste genuinely alive. Toasted pine nuts bring a warm, buttery depth that blends beautifully with packed fresh basil and a couple of garlic cloves, while nutritional yeast steps in to deliver that savory, cheesy quality without any dairy. The result is a completely plant-based sauce that doesn't feel like it's missing a thing. Traditional pesto recipes sometimes call for nuts that can be tricky to source safely, but pine nuts are the only nut here, keeping things straightforward and worry-free for anyone avoiding brazil nuts. A slow stream of extra-virgin olive oil pulled into the food processor gives the pesto its glossy, spoonable body, and a splash of water lets you dial in the exact consistency you want. It's the kind of versatile sauce you'll want to keep in the fridge all week — tossed through pasta, spread on toast, or spooned over roasted vegetables without a second thought.
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Learn more →Ingredients
6 servings
- ⅓ cup pine nuts
- 2 cups fresh basil leaves, packed
- 2 cloves garlic, peeled
- 3 tbsp nutritional yeast
- 1 tsp lemon zest (from about 1 lemon)
- 1 tbsp fresh lemon juice
- ½ tsp salt
- ¼ tsp black pepper
- ½ cup extra-virgin olive oil
- 1–2 tbsp water, as needed
Instructions
- 1
Toast the pine nuts in a small dry skillet over medium-low heat, stirring frequently, until golden and fragrant, about 2–3 minutes. Watch closely, as they can brown quickly. Transfer immediately to a plate and let cool for 2 minutes.
- 2
Combine the toasted pine nuts, basil, garlic, nutritional yeast, lemon zest, lemon juice, salt, and black pepper in a food processor. Pulse 8–10 times until the mixture is coarsely chopped and the ingredients are evenly broken down.
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