Easy Vegan Kale Pesto with Cashews

This vegan kale pesto recipe yields a deliciously fresh, deeply savory pesto using basil, kale, and cashews as the base. Packed with protein and a variety of nutrients, this dairy-free pesto makes a versatile condiment that’ll brighten up the flavor of any dish, from sandwiches and wraps to pastas and soups.

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The classic, dairy-based pesto recipe calls for pine nuts and parmesan cheese.

However, pine nuts are quite expensive, and parmesan cheese doesn’t work for those of us who are lactose intolerant or vegan like myself.

Before I went vegan, I was a huge fan of cheese, even though dairy made my stomach misbehave and my skin break out pretty bad.

Thankfully, I figured out a way to adapt pesto to make it vegan and more affordable while keeping it just as flavorful without cheese.

Here’s what I did to make that happen:

• Instead of pine nuts, I use raw cashews. They make a great substitution for pine nuts while adding creaminess to the final product.
• Instead of parmesan cheese, I use nutritional yeast + lemon juice. This combination works perfect to make my pesto deliciously cheesy, tangy, with a touch of sharpness typical to parmesan cheese.

Before you know it, you’ll want to smother that pesto on everything!

(By the way, did you know that parmesan cheese isn’t even vegetarian? It’s made with rennet – an enzyme derived from calf stomachs.

You know what has to happen to calves that lets people get into their stomachs 🙁)

Adding kale to this pesto was another liberty I took while experimenting with this recipe. Kale leaves add a bright green color + even more fiber and nutrients to this already healthy recipe.

This pesto works well with a variety of recipes: use it in my cold vegan pesto pasta salad, or toss it with hot pasta and blanched broccoli for an easy and delicious meal.

Pasta is a natural fit for this kale and cashew pesto.

If I’m in a hurry, I just boil half a package of spaghetti, adding some chopped broccoli and a cup of frozen peas a copuple minutes before the pasta is ready.

Once the spaghetti is drained, I toss it with this pesto, and voilà – a healthy and quick dinner is on the table.

Vegan Kale and Cashew Pesto Ingredients

(See ingredient amounts and notes in the printable recipe card below.)

• Fresh kale leaves, stems removed
• Fresh basil leaves
• Raw cashews
• Garlic cloves
• Nutritional yeast
• Freshly squeezed lemon juice
• Olive oil (omit for oil-free)
• Salt, black pepper to taste
• Room-temperature water

How to Make Vegan Kale Pesto with Cashews

(This is an expanded step-by-step version of this recipe. For a more condensed version, see the printable recipe card below.)

Fill up a small pot with water. Put it on the stove and bring it to a boil.

While you’re waiting for the water to boil, tear kale leaves off of their stems.

(No need to tear them into smaller pieces since we’ll be blending them.)

Once the water is boiling, put in the kale leaves and press down with a spatula to make sure they’re fully submerged.

Cook the kale for 30 seconds until it turns bright green:

Make an ice bath: add cold water and ice cubes into a medium-sized bowl.

Drain the kale and immediately put it into the ice bath. This stops the cooking and helps the leaves keep their vibrant green color.

While the kale is cooling, get the rest of the ingredients ready:

• Wash basil and separate leaves from the stems;
• Peel the garlic and roughly cut it;
• Squeeze a lemon to get lemon juice;
• Get your cashews, nutritional yeast, salt, pepper, and olive oil.

Drain the kale, squeeze out extra water, and put it into the bowl of a food processor fitted with an S-blade.

Add in the rest of the ingredients EXCEPT water (basil, garlic, lemon juice, salt, pepper). Blend for 1–2 minutes, until the mixture forms a coarse paste:

Stop and scrape the sides as needed.

With the food processor running, slowly add water, starting with 1/2 cup and adding more if needed, until the pesto is mostly smooth but still has some texture.

Taste and adjust the seasoning if needed.

Use anywhere you’d use pesto. Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 1 week.

FAQs

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Yield: Yield: About 2 cups

Easy Vegan Kale & Cashew Pesto

Print

This easy vegan kale and cashew pesto is a delicious plant-based makeover of the traditional pesto recipe. Kale leaves add a nice, vibrant color, and deliver even more nutrients and fiber. Raw cashews are a more affordable alternative to pine nuts. Spread this dairy-free kale pesto on sandwiches, use as a sauce for pasta, boost the flavor of soups - the choice is yours!

Prep Time 10 minutes

Cook Time 3 minutes

Total Time 13 minutes

Ingredients

• 1 cup kale leaves, packed, stems removed
• 1/2 cup fresh basil leaves, packed
• 1/2 cup raw cashews*
• 2-3 garlic cloves (more or less to taste), peeled and halved
• 1/4 cup nutritional yeast
• 1 Tbsp lemon juice
• 2 Tbsp olive oil (omit if you are oil-free)
• pinch of salt, to taste
• 1/2 cup water***, plus more if needed

Instructions

1. Bring a small pot of water to a boil. Add the kale leaves and cook for 30 seconds, until bright green.
2. Drain the kale and immediately put it into an ice bath (a bowl of iced water) to stop the cooking.
3. Once the kale has cooled (2-3 min), drain it and squeeze out extra water.
4. Transfer the kale to a food processor** fitted with an S-blade. Add the basil, cashews*, garlic, nutritional yeast (if using), lemon juice, and olive oil (omit for oil-free). Blend for 1–2 minutes, until the mixture forms a coarse paste.
5. With the food processor running, slowly add water***, starting with 1/2 cup and adding more as needed, until the pesto is mostly smooth. Taste and adjust the salt and lemon juice if needed.
6. Use in any recipes that call for pesto. Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 1 week.

Notes

* For a nut-free pesto, use pumpkin seeds instead of cashews.

** This pesto can be blended in a blender instead of a food processor. If using a blender, add the water at the same time as the rest of the ingredients. You may have to add more water to make sure the blender runs smoothly.

*** If you're planning to use this pesto as a sauce for pasta, add more water to thin it out. If you're using it as a spread for sandwiches, wraps, etc., add less water to keep it thicker.

Recommended Products

As an Amazon Associate and member of other affiliate programs, I earn from qualifying purchases. If you make a purchase through affiliate links on my blog, I receive a very small commission that helps me run this blog, at no extra cost to you. Thank you for your support!

• 
  Cuisinart DLC-2011CHBY Prep 11 Plus 11-Cup Food Processor, Brushed Stainless
• 
  Vitamix E310 Explorian Blender, 48 oz. Container
• 
  Anthony's Premium Nutritional Yeast Flakes (1lb), Verified Gluten Free

Nutrition Information:

Yield:

8

Serving Size:

1
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 156Total Fat: 11gSaturated Fat: 2gUnsaturated Fat: 9gCholesterol: 0mgCarbohydrates: 10gFiber: 3gSugar: 1gProtein: 8g

Please note that the provided nutritional information data is approximate.

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Alina Zavatsky - Vegan Runner Eats

Alina Zavatsky is a vegan of 12+ years, a passionate blogger, YouTuber, and a mom. She helps new vegans and their families navigate a vegan diet and lifestyle in a sustainable and enjoyable way. Check out her new vegan meal planning app, Veg Easy, designed to make meal planning a breeze for everyone.

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