Parsley Pesto

To learn more on this topic, check out our guide on how to make vegan pesto + 9 pesto recipes.

If you follow our blog you know by now that we are huge pesto fans. The thing is, once you learn the basics of pesto, you can easily customize the recipe based on the season, the veggies, and the herbs you have at hand.

In this case, for instance, the parsley plants we have on our terrace are growing like crazy and we literally can’t consume the parsley fast enough. And so we decided to make pesto with it.

Parsley pesto is awesome because you can make a huge batch of it in literally 5 minutes, freeze it, and use it at any time, within 6 months. And the best thing is that this parsley pesto recipe goes pretty much on anything.

We tried it with homemade gnocchi, homemade pasta, regular pasta, pasta salads, on toasted bread, to dip focaccia, and even drizzled on things like tomatoes and grilled veggies, with a squeeze of lemon and a twist of black pepper. It’s just awesome, and we absolutely love it.

We like to make it with a medium thickness that is good for spreading on a slice of toasted bread or to use in a wrap or sandwich. If you want it thinner, for instance, to drizzle on something or to use as salad dressing, then just add a little more oil or water.

From this recipe, you can expect a pesto that is fresh, bright, healthy, nutritious, packed with plant-based protein and healthy fats, and vegan. We use nuts to replace the parmesan cheese and keep this parsley pesto dairy-free so that anyone can enjoy it.

Ingredients

Parsley: we recommend using flat-leaf parsley, the Italian kind. Italian parsley is more tender and aromatic and more suitable to use for pesto. Its flavor is bold but not overpowering. Combined with the olive oil and the nuts it makes a bright and fresh pesto.

Curly parsley, on the other hand, is rougher, less aromatic, and less flavorful overall. It stays coarser in the pesto, it’s not as pleasant, and the pesto just doesn’t have the same depth of flavor. We find that pesto made with curly parsley requires another herb to taste good. You can use for instance half fresh basil leaves and half curly parsley.

Nuts: almond or walnuts are best for parsley pesto, and you can use them interchangeably. We use nuts to replace the texture, nutrition, and creaminess of the parmesan cheese. Nuts, of course, are way healthier than cheese, while still packed with protein and healthy fats. Other nuts you can use are pistachios, cashews, and macadamia.

Pine nuts: we list pine nuts separately from other nuts because they serve a different purpose, and behave differently. Pine nuts have a distinctive taste that makes any pesto more authentic. Also, pine nuts “melt” when blended, adding texture and creaminess that other nuts don’t. If you can’t get your hands on pine nuts, add more of the other nuts.

Garlic: a key ingredient in pesto. We use a small clove, but you can use as many garlic cloves as you wish.

Nutritional Yeast: This is an optional ingredient, but we do recommend it if you like a mild cheesy flavor in your pesto. We think that nutritional yeast really shines in this recipe, and makes it more flavorful and delicious.

Olive oil: extra virgin olive oil is recommended as it has a rounder, fruitier, and more aromatic flavor. It’s also healthier than regular olive oil because it’s mechanically pressed (not chemically), and it retains more antioxidants. If you don’t have extra virgin olive oil you can use regular olive oil.

Ice cold water: we add ice cold water to keep things cool in the blender, and the pesto extra bright in color. We also use water to reduce the amount of oil, which in traditional pesto is a lot.

Salt: since we don’t add any salty cheese like parmesan or pecorino, this parsley pesto recipe requires salt to taste good. We use 1/2 teaspoon, but you can adjust the amount of salt based on your taste and dietary preferences or requirements.

Other ingredients

Lemon: we don’t use lemon in our recipe, however, if you want to add lemon juice or lemon zest we recommend doing it just before serving the pesto. We don’t recommend adding lemon to the actual pesto because lemon doesn’t store well, and tastes best when fresh.

Also, authentic Italian pesto should not be acidic. There’s no lemon or vinegar in the original pesto recipe. The acidic flavor you taste in store-bought pestos is due to preservatives that extend shelf life.

Questions

Storage

Store vegan parsley pesto in a jar in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. You can cover it with a thin layer of olive oil to prevent it from drying up and preserve its bright green color.

If you want to store it for longer, then freeze it. To freeze, add it to a small jar or in ice cube trays and pop it in the freezer. Use within 6 months. Thaw in the refrigerator overnight, or if using it with pasta, melt with some pasta cooking water.