Supergreen Vegan Pesto

This vegan pesto is a delightful twist on a classic Italian recipe, incorporating other greens like kale, spinach, and radish greens. It’s the perfect dairy-free pesto sauce for pasta, eggs, and spreading on bread with fresh mozzarella and tomatoes for a Caprese-style sandwich! Consider making extra to freeze for easy week-night dinners year-round.

This recipe appeared in the August Meal Plan of Emma Frisch’s Substack newsletter, Time For Dins. To see all meal plans, head to the Meal Plan Index.

It’s no secret I’m a fanatic about pesto. (I’m part Italian, so I kind of have to be, right?) I have a Basil-Sunflower Seed Pesto recipe in Feast By Firelight.

Pesto is a wondrous thing, for so many reasons. Children tend to love it and you can disguise anything green inside (like kale, chard, and other nourishing greens and herbs). It can be used to dress pasta, spread on bread with cheese, season soups, and toss with roasted vegetables. And, it freezes beautifully, adding a mouthful of summer to any winter meal.

Ingredients for Vegan Pesto

Here’s what you’ll need to make this delicious vegan pesto:

• Greens from one bunch radishes, washed (or substitute with 2 cups kale, spinach, or parsley – or a mix)
• 5 cups loosely packed basil leaves, rinsed
• 3 garlic scapes or 2 cloves garlic
• 1/4 cup nutritional yeast (for that cheesy flavor without the dairy)
• 1/4 walnuts (or pine nuts, pumpkins seeds, or sunflower seeds)
• 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
• Juice of 1 lemon
• Salt

How to Make Vegan Pesto with Radish Tops (and other Greens)

Wondering how to make vegan pesto with radish greens? Follow these simple steps:

1. Prepare the Greens: Rinse the radish greens (or kale, spinach, or parsley) and basil. Pat dry with a towel.
2. Blend the Ingredients: In a food processor, combine the greens and herbs, nutritional yeast, nuts or seeds, garlic, and salt. Pulse until the mixture is finely chopped.
3. Add Liquid Ingredients: With the processor running, slowly drizzle in the olive oil and lemon juice until the pesto reaches your desired consistency.
4. Season to Taste: Add salt to taste, and pulse a few more times to combine.
5. Serve and Store: Use immediately or store in a sealed container in the fridge for up to a week, or freeze for longer storage.
6. To freeze pesto: Fill a jar up to 1/4 inch of the top of the jar, which will allow the pesto to expand when frozen. Seal the jar loosely and place in the freezer.

Ways to Use Dairy-Free Pesto Sauce for Pasta and Bread

There are countless ways to enjoy this dairy-free pesto sauce:

• Pasta: Toss with your favorite pasta for a simple, flavorful meal.
• Bread: Spread on bread with fresh mozzarella and tomatoes for a Caprese-style sandwich.
• Eggs: Spoon over scrambled eggs or an omelet.
• Vegetables: Mix with roasted or steamed vegetables.
• Soups: Stir into soups for a burst of fresh flavor.
• Grazing Boards: Pack in a leak-proof jar and bring along fixings for a grazing board, like cheese, crackers, pickles, and trail mix.

More Pesto Recipes

There are so many ways to make pesto. Here are a few more recipes, plus ways to use up extra pesto! You can make any of these pestos vegan by replacing the cheese with nutritional flakes. Start by adding half the amount of recommended cheese, adding more to taste as you blend the pesto.

• Rainbow Chard, Croutin, and Mint Pesto
• Rainbow Chard and Mint Pesto (Gluten-Free)
• Wild Ramp and Sunflower Seed Pesto (Gluten-Free)
• Cheesy Pesto Tahini Kale Chips
• Pesto Garlic Bread
• Zucchini “Pappardelle” with Pesto

Supergreen Vegan Pesto

Print Recipe

5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star

No reviews

Radish greens are often disregarded as unusable trimmings, but offer a wealth of nutrition. You substitute them for kale or spinach, which you’d use raw (no flash cooking like radish greens, which helps remove the bitterness). Or, replace the radish greens with more basil or parsley.

• Prep Time: 10 minutes
• Cook Time: 2 minutes
• Total Time: 12 minutes
• Yield: About 1.5 cups 1x

Ingredients

Units USM Scale 1x2x3x

• Greens from one bunch radishes, rinsed
• 5 cups loosely packed basil leaves, rinsed
• 3 garlic scapes, chopped into 1-inch pieces (substitute with 2 small garlic cloves)
• 1/4 cup nutritional yeast
• 1/4 cup roasted walnuts
• 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil (EVOO), plus extra for drizzling
• Juice of 1 and 1/2 lemons
• 1/2 teaspoon sea salt

Cook Mode Prevent your screen from going dark

Instructions

1. In a small saucepan on the stovetop, add the radish greens with a splash of water and wilt gently over medium-high heat. Remove from heat and transfer to a blender or food processor.
2. Add the basil, garlic scapes or cloves, nutritional yeast, walnuts, EVOO, lemon juice, and salt to the blender and pulse until the greens are broken down. Slowly bring the speed up to a high whiz until the pesto is smooth and creamy. Transfer to a jar and drizzle EVOO over top to create a film. This will act as a seal and help preserve the pesto’s bright green color.
3. Store in the fridge for up to 5 days until ready to use. Each time you remove some pesto, create a new olive oil film to preserve the remaining pesto.

Notes

Substitutions: Swap radish greens for any other greens like spinach, kale or parsley. If doing so, use them raw – no need to wilt. Swap nutritional yeast for Parmigiano Reggiano.

Recipe Card powered by