Easy Creamy Vegan Pesto
A delicious cashew-based rich and creamy pesto that you can whip up in about 5 minutes (after the cashew soak time)!
Ingredients
- 1 cup raw cashews
- 3/4 cup filtered water
- 25 g basil leaves (apx. 1/2 cup packed, plus more for garnish)
- 2 tbsp nutritional yeast
- 10 g chopped or pressed garlic (apx 2 very large cloves)
- 1/2 tsp salt, plus more to taste
- fresh ground pepper
- 1 pound orecchiette pasta (or noodle of choice)
- 1/4 cup pine nuts
Instructions
- 1. Soak your cashews, covered in filtered water, for at least one hour - maybe longer depending on your blender (read blog post above for further details on this).
- 2. Cook your pasta according to the directions on the box.
- 3. Drain cashews and add to blender.
- 4. Add fresh filtered water (3/4 cup), basil leaves, garlic, nutritional yeast and salt to the cashews.
- 5. Puree until the mixture reaches a silky smooth consistency.
- 6. Toast your pine nuts in a nonstick skillet over medium-low heat. Watch these carefully and toss often, once heated they will burn quickly!
- 7. Drain your pasta and add cream sauce, stirring to combine. Top with torn basil, toasted pine nuts and Parmesan or vegan cheese of choice (optional).
Notes
*Note: your blender may require that the cashews soak for a longer period of time (up to 24 hours).
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!