This nut free, dairy free pesto sauce is full of flavor and can be made in just a few minutes! This recipe is so easy to make and it’s perfect for serving on pasta or pizza. You can even use this as a salad dressing or dip for fresh breadsticks.
We love fresh pesto at our house.
We grow basil in the summer and make fresh pesto to put on pasta or eat with bread – it’s a favorite easy meal.
When I had to eliminate dairy from my diet, stopped making pesto. And when my son was diagnosed with a tree nut allergy, I wondered if pesto would be on our menu ever again. Would it be the same without pine nuts and parmesan cheese?
The good news is, you can easily make a delicious, savory pesto that’s bursting with garden fresh flavor. And you can make it without any dairy or nuts. It’s simple, delicious, and with some gluten free pasta, it makes a great addition to your dinner menu.
Ingredient Notes
- Basil – Fresh basil is the key to that classic pesto flavor. You can definitely make pesto with other things if you like. Try fresh cilantro, parsley, spinach, or even carrot tops.
- Garlic – Garlic cloves add a lot of flavor to this recipe. If you can’t have garlic, you may want to add something else with a stronger flavor, like chives or even lemon juice. Basil and lemon would make a very bright tasting pesto that would be perfect for summer.
- Nutritional Yeast – Nutritional yeast adds a nice savory, cheesy flavor to this sauce. It’s not necessary though – you can easily enjoy pesto without nutritional yeast, so don’t despair if you can’t find it or if it isn’t safe for your dietary needs.
- Gluten Free Pasta – If you’re looking for an allergy friendly, gluten free pasta to serve with this pesto, try Jovial pasta, Ancient Harvest, or Cybele’s. Be sure to call the company and make sure any brand is safe for your family.
Variations
This dairy free pesto is so easy to make and also really flexible. If you don’t have basil, it works well with spinach. In fact, I make it with spinach all the time in the winter. You can even use half spinach and half basil if you want to. If you feel like you want some seeds in there, throw in some pumpkin seeds, hemp seeds, or sunflower seeds.
Step by Step Instructions
- If you’d like to serve this with pasta, go ahead and make that first. The pesto only takes a few minutes to make, so you’ll want to have the pasta all cooked and ready to go.
- Place the fresh basil leaves, garlic cloves, oil, nutritional yeast, and salt in the food processor or blender.
- Pulse until the ingredients are well combined.
- Stir into freshly cooked pasta and enjoy.
Serving Suggestions
Serve this nut free pesto with:
- fresh bread
- pasta
- zoodles or sweet potato noodles
- roasted veggies
- roasted potatoes
- chicken or fish
- spread it on a sandwich, like this vegan grilled cheese
- mix it into vegan sour cream to make a dip for chips or veggies
Storage
Store leftovers in the refrigerator. They should stay good for about 3 days.
You can also make a big batch of this and put it in an ice cube tray to freeze it. Once it’s frozen, pop the ice cubes out and store in a freezer bag. That way, you will always have some pesto on hand to throw into soup or a casserole.
Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links.
Recipe
5 Minute Nut Free Dairy Free Pesto.
Ingredients
- 3-5 garlic cloves
- ¼ cup olive oil
- 2 cups fresh basil or spinach leaves or arugula
- 2 Tablespoons nutritional yeast
- ½ teaspoon sea salt
- optional: pinch of red pepper flakes
Instructions
- Place all ingredients in the food processor and process until combined.
- Taste and add more salt if needed.
- Serve with pasta or breadsticks or whatever you’re in the mood for!
Notes
Nutrition
Darryl
This is my favorite way to eat pasta!
Judy
Hello,
I made this recipie for dinner tonight. I cannot handle spicy so i omitted the pepper flakes. I found it very very salty so i made another batch without salt and mixed the two and i still find it too salty. Nex time i will use only a pinch! Other than that it is wondeful to be able to enjoy pesto again! Thank you for the recipie :)
Jill Bonham
This looks great. How long can you store it after making?
Irma
Just made this after having missed pesto for a very long time. Both kids are allergic to dairy and nuts, so I’m excited to have them finally try this vibrant deliciousness.
Thank you for this recipe! :)
Karl
May I ask what plugin you are using for the recipe pls And nutritional yeast, is that fresh yeast ?
Tricia
Is nutritional yeast just for flavor? I’m on an AIP diet and not sure we are supposed to have it. Would it taste ok without it?
Kelly Roenicke
Yes, it gives it a cheesy flavor. It’s great without it though, we make it that way as well!
Tamela Mecum
What brand little chopper are you using?
Kelly Roenicke
It’s by Procter Silex. It works well!
Kristy @ Southern In Law
Yum! I loveeeeeeee pesto and this looks so bright and fresh and delicious! <3
Kelly
Thanks, Kristy!
Teresa
I bet this would be great with roasted chickpeas ground up in it instead of the pine nuts.
Kelly
That would be a good way to add more protein!
Sharon @ Nut Free Wok
Your recipes are so great! I love pesto too and really miss it. I have tried making my own pesto, I think I go overboard with the garlic so now I am encouraged to try your recipe. Do you use nutritional yeast in other recipes? What brand and how do you use it?
Kelly
Thank you, Sharon! I use Bragg’s brand, but NOW Foods also makes it. You may want to call about the processing to make sure you’re comfortable. I also love nutritional yeast on popcorn, and on kale chips. http://theprettybee.com/2015/08/vegan-cheesy-kale-chips.html
Jean
I like how simple the recipe is, Thank you! Also, how long can this be stored in the refrigerator for? Thank you!
Kelly
That’s a good question! I have only stored it overnight because we don’t make a huge batch, and we love it, so we eat it! I would think it would be fine for 3-4 days.
nutritioulicious
What a fabulous recipe! I’ve made pesto without cheese before so I can have it with meat meals (we keep kosher so don’t mix meat and dairy at meals), but it’s always missing something. The nutritional yeast is such a perfect add-in!
Kelly
Thanks, Jessica! We love nutritional yeast.
Elizabeth DiBurro
This looks so easy to make! What a great change from tomato sauce! I’ll have to make this soon. Thanks!
Kelly
Thanks, I hope you like it!
Julia
Nutritional yeast instead of cheese?!! My gosh, you are one brilliant woman! I always have nutritional yeast on hand and sometimes leave cheese out of my pesto sauces to keep it super clean…I’m digging this idea of adding the cheesey flavor without the cheese. SO on top of this!
Kelly
Yay! I hope you love it, we feel it adds that little extra something!
Gayle @ Pumpkin 'N Spice
Pesto is my favorite sauce! This nut free version sounds fantastic!
Kelly
Thanks, Gayle!