Cheesy Vegan Pesto

4.2 stars, average of 31 ratings

By Dearna Bond, updated October 9 2023
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Pesto is such a versatile condiment to have on hand. It can be slathered on keto bread or low-carb crackers as a snack, tossed through zoodles to make a tasty vegan pasta dish, slathered on meat or fish as a delicious marinade.

This recipe is both nut free, dairy free and vegan, and uses a mixture of sunflower and pumpkin seeds along with nutritional yeast instead of the more traditional pine nuts and parmesan cheese. Rest assured though that flavour isn’t compromised here — this pesto is just as delicious as it’s traditional counterpart!

0 days, 0 hours, 0 minutes

Hands-on 5 minutes Overall 5 minutes

Serving size 1 tbsp, 15 g/ 0.5 oz

Allergy information for Cheesy Vegan Pesto

✔ Gluten free

✔ Dairy free

✔ Egg free

✔ Nut free

✔ Nightshade free

✔ Pork free

✔ Avocado free

✔ Coconut free

✔ Fish free

✔ Shellfish free

✔ Beef free

Pescatarian

Vegetarian

Vegan

Nutritional values (per serving, 1 tbsp, 15 g/ 0.5 oz)

Net carbs0.9 grams

Protein1.7 grams

Fat5.8 grams

Calories62 kcal

Calories from carbs 6%, protein 11%, fat 83%

Total carbs1.6 gramsFiber0.7 gramsSugars0.1 gramsSaturated fat0.8 gramsSodium146 mg(6% RDA)Magnesium14 mg(4% RDA)Potassium67 mg(3% EMR)

Ingredients (makes 1 cup/ 240 ml/ 8 fl oz)

1 bunch basil (40 g/ 1.4 oz)
2 tbsp sunflower seeds (20 g/ 0.7 oz)
2 tbsp pumpkin seeds (20 g/ 0.7 oz)
4 garlic cloves
2 ¹/₂ tbsp nutritional yeast (30 g/ 1.1 oz)
1 tsp sea salt, or to taste
2 tbsp lemon juice (30 ml)
¹/₃ cup extra virgin olive oil (80 ml)

Instructions

Wash and pat dry the basil.
Add all of the ingredients except for the lemon juice and olive oil to a food processor, and process until the seeds and basil are finely chopped.
Add the lemon juice and pulse to combine. Scoop out the basil mix and place in a small bowl or jar. Stir through the olive oil until combined.
Store in a sealed contained in the fridge 2 – 3 weeks.

Make sure when storing that there is a layer of olive oil covering the pesto — this will keep the ingredients fresher for longer.

Ingredient nutritional breakdown (per serving, 1 tbsp, 15 g/ 0.5 oz)

Net carbs	Protein	Fat	Calories
Basil, fresh
0 g	0.1 g	0 g	1 kcal
Sunflower seeds
0.1 g	0.2 g	0.6 g	6 kcal
Pumpkin seeds (pepitas)
0.1 g	0.4 g	0.6 g	7 kcal
Garlic, fresh
0.2 g	0 g	0 g	1 kcal
Yeast, nutritional yeast, dried
0.3 g	0.9 g	0.1 g	7 kcal
Salt, sea salt
0 g	0 g	0 g	0 kcal
Lemon juice, fresh
0.1 g	0 g	0 g	0 kcal
Olive oil, extra virgin
0 g	0 g	4.5 g	40 kcal
Total per serving, 1 tbsp, 15 g/ 0.5 oz
0.9 g	1.7 g	5.8 g	62 kcal