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    Home » Recipes

    Nut-Free Pesto

    Published: Feb 13, 2023 · Leave a Comment

    Jump to Recipe Print Recipe

    This nut-free pesto is made with sunflower butter, so it's completely safe for people with tree-nut allergies. It also happens to be vegan and loaded with hidden greens, but we promise you can't tell. You can use it as a 1-1 substitute for regular pesto in any recipe you choose.

    A jar of nut-free pesto.

    Our cousin has a nut allergy, so we tested this recipe for her (Maddie, this one is for you), and I have to say...it's a keeper. This nut-free pesto is also vegan, Whole30, Paleo, gluten-free, and dairy-free, so it pretty much fits any diet you might be on. If you wanna go crazy and add cheese, you can do that. It's your pesto, not mine. Oh, and did I mention that this stuff takes like 5 minutes to make? Yeah, 5 minutes.

    Looking for yummy stuff to put this pesto on? Try our chicken pesto hearts of palm pasta, creamy pesto fettuccine, pesto Caprese pasta salad, or green eggs and ham.

    Jump to:
    • Key Ingredients
    • Kitchen Tools
    • Step-by-Step Instructions
    • Frequently asked questions
    • Nut-Free Pesto Recipe

    Key Ingredients

    • Fresh basil
    • Fresh spinach. We use baby spinach, but any spinach will do.
    • Sunflower butter. This takes the place of pine nuts in traditional pesto recipes. Make sure the only ingredient is sunflower seeds (or sunflower seeds and salt). Don't get a sunflower butter that has sugar as an added ingredient. We use this Organic SunButter.
    • Olive oil
    • Garlic
    • Fresh lemon juice
    • Spices: black pepper, salt, and crushed red pepper
    A jar of nut-free pesto and a container of sunflower butter.

    Kitchen Tools

    • Food processor

    Step-by-Step Instructions

    Step 1: Add spinach, basil, garlic, lemon juice, sunflower butter, olive oil, salt, black pepper, and crushed red pepper to a food processor and process it until it's smooth.

    Step 2: Enjoy this over pasta, chicken, salmon, or whatever you'd like! You can store it in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days or in the freezer for up to 6 months.

    Hearts of palm pesto pasta on a fork.

    Frequently asked questions

    Can I add cheese to this pesto?

    Of course! If you're not vegan/Whole30/paleo/dairy-free, feel free to add cheese! I'd recommend good quality parmesan or pecorino Romano. Just add it to the food processor with the other ingredients or mix in finely grated cheese at the end. I'd start with a tablespoon or so and go from there.

    I'm not nut-free. Can I use other nut or seed butters in this pesto?

    Yes! I've also tested almond butter and mixed nut butter, which usually includes some combination of almonds, cashews, pumpkin seeds, chia seeds, or flax seeds. If you try other substitutes, let us know how it was in the comments!

    How do I store this pesto?

    You can store it in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days or in the freezer for up to 6 months.

    Nut-Free Pesto Recipe

    Nut-Free Pesto Recipe

    Recipe by Mollie

    This nut-free pesto is made with sunflower butter, so it's completely safe for people with tree-nut allergies. It also happens to be vegan and loaded with hidden greens, but we promise you can't tell. You can use it as a 1-1 substitute for regular pesto in any recipe you choose.

    Course: SaucesCuisine: ItalianDifficulty: Easy
    5 from 1 vote
    Pin
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    Yields

    1.5

    cups
    Prep time

    5

    minutes
    Calories

    150

    kcal
    Total time

    5

    minutes
    Cook Mode

    Prevent your screen from going dark!

    Ingredients

    • 4 cups 4 spinach, packed into a measuring cup

    • ½ cup ½ fresh basil, packed into a measuring cup

    • 6 tablespoons 6 olive oil

    • 6 cloves 6 garlic

    • 2 tablespoons 2 fresh lemon juice

    • 2 tablespoons 2 sunflower butter

    • 1 teaspoon 1 black pepper

    • ½ teaspoon ½ salt

    • ¼ teaspoon ¼ crushed red pepper

    Directions

    • Combine all of the ingredients in a food processor and process until smooth.
    • Enjoy over pasta, chicken, salmon, or whatever you'd like! Store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days or in the freezer for up to 6 months.

    Notes

    • If you're not vegan/Whole30/paleo/dairy-free, feel free to add cheese! I'd recommend good quality parmesan or pecorino Romano. Just add it to the food processor with the other ingredients or mix in finely grated cheese at the end.

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    hi, we're Michael and Mollie

    Welcome! We are Michael & Mollie, a hangry economics enthusiast and her husband. Our goal is to provide you with delicious, accessible, and healthy-ish recipes that are both time- and money-efficient.

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