Oats Free Vegan Walnut Pesto
Bright, herby, and deeply savory, this walnut pesto is the kind of sauce that makes everything it touches taste more exciting. Toasting the walnuts first is a small step that pays off big — it draws out a rich, nutty depth that makes the finished pesto taste far more complex than the ingredient list suggests. Nutritional yeast steps in to deliver that cheesy, umami punch you'd expect from a classic pesto, no dairy required. Fresh basil, lemon juice, and good olive oil round everything out into something vibrant and completely plant-based. Pesto can be a surprisingly tricky category to navigate when you're avoiding certain grains, since some store-bought versions sneak in unexpected additives or are processed on shared lines — making a batch from scratch here means you know exactly what's in it. The food processor does most of the work, and the whole thing comes together in minutes. Spoon it over pasta, swirl it into soups, spread it on toast, or use it as a dip — it's endlessly versatile and genuinely hard to stop eating.
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Learn more →Ingredients
6 servings
- ½ cup walnuts
- 2 cups fresh basil leaves, loosely packed
- 3 tbsp nutritional yeast
- 2 cloves garlic, peeled
- 1 tbsp fresh lemon juice
- ½ tsp salt
- ¼ tsp black pepper
- ½ cup extra virgin olive oil
Instructions
- 1
Add the walnuts to a small dry skillet over medium heat and toast, stirring frequently, until fragrant and lightly golden, about 3–4 minutes. Watch closely, as they can brown quickly. Transfer to a plate and let cool for 2 minutes.
- 2
Combine the toasted walnuts, basil, nutritional yeast, garlic, lemon juice, salt, and black pepper in a food processor. Pulse 8–10 times until the mixture is coarsely chopped and roughly uniform.
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