3 Minute Nut-Free Spinach Basil Pesto

Finally, a nut-free spinach basil pesto recipe.

I love love love pesto dishes, but why did no one tell me how expensive pine nuts are?? The classic pesto recipe is made with pine nuts, basil, and parmesan. Where I am, pine nuts in bulk go for $20+ a pound… that is ridiculous.

So I looked at my fridge and saw this beautiful bundle of green spinach, and inspiration struck. A little magic in the blender, and voila: nut-free spinach basil pesto was born!

You don’t even taste the spinach, but it adds such a lovely, bright green color to pesto. And when you eliminate the nuts, you save tons of money for an even better taste than store-bought! Not to mention, you save so many calories using all veggies instead of majority nuts (nuts are very calorie-dense.) While testing this recipe, I left out the grated parmesan and didn’t notice a difference in taste at all – feel free to add in if you don’t care about dairy-free stuff.

In the cost breakdown, I included the cost of basil… but I’m actually growing my own little basil plant (I named him Barry) so I didn’t even have to pay for the basil this time around! Side note: do you guys grow your own herbs? Drop some tips for me in the comments! I really want to get to the point where I have cilantro, thyme, basil, etc.. all in my arsenal. I’m still in an apartment though, so they have to be balcony growers.

Whip up this pesto to use in pasta, on chicken, as a pizza sauce… the possibilities are really endless. And for other ideas for homemade dips, dressings, and sauces, click here for my recipe index!

3 Minute Nut-Free Spinach Basil Pesto

Shani W.

Whip up this tasty spinach-basil pesto to use in pasta, on chicken, as a pizza sauce… the possibilities are really endless!

5 from 1 vote

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Prep Time 3 minutes mins

Course Lunch

Servings 10 oz. jar

Ingredients

  

• 2 cups basil leaves
• 4 cups spinach leaves
• ⅓ cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 2 ct. garlic cloves
• 2 tbsp. lemon juice

Instructions

 

• Add all ingredients to a food processor or blender.
• Pulse/blend until smooth. If too thick, add a bit of water at a time until your desired consistency. Enjoy!

Notes

*For about $4, I bought a basil plant that grows so well in my apartment. I included the cost of basil in case you don’t have one, but if you use herbs a lot definitely look into growing your own!

Keyword Nut-Free, One-Bowl, Sauces

The Coined Breakdown

• Total Cost per serving: $0.92
• Total Cost (about 10 oz.): $4.61
• Those Other Guys: $4.98 per 10 oz.