Wheat Free Vegan Garlic Scape Pesto
Garlic scapes are the curly green shoots that spring up from hardneck garlic bulbs, and they bring a mellow, grassy garlic flavor that's a little softer than a raw clove but far more interesting than garlic powder. Blended with fresh basil, toasted pine nuts, bright lemon juice, and nutritional yeast, this pesto is deeply savory and vibrant — the kind of sauce that makes you want to put it on absolutely everything. Toasting the pine nuts first is a small step that pays off big, adding a warm, buttery depth that anchors the whole batch. Every ingredient here is naturally free of wheat and gluten-containing grains, so there's no need to swap anything out or second-guess a label — it's just clean, whole-food cooking from start to finish. The nutritional yeast does the heavy lifting in place of parmesan, delivering that umami, cheesy quality without any dairy. Toss it with your favorite pasta, spread it on rice cakes, swirl it into soups, or use it as a dipping sauce — this pesto is endlessly versatile and keeps well in the fridge for the week ahead.
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Learn more →Ingredients
6 servings
- ⅓ cup pine nuts
- 6 oz garlic scapes (about 10–12 scapes), roughly chopped
- 1 cup fresh basil leaves, loosely packed
- 3 tbsp nutritional yeast
- 2 tbsp fresh lemon juice
- ½ tsp lemon zest
- ½ tsp salt, plus more to taste
- 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 3–4 minutes. Watch closely, as they can brown quickly. Transfer immediately to a plate to cool.
- 2
Add the garlic scapes, basil, toasted pine nuts, nutritional yeast, lemon juice, lemon zest, salt, and black pepper to a food processor. Pulse 8–10 times until the mixture is coarsely chopped and uniform.
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