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★★★★★ 5 from 1 Reviews

Vegan Almond Kale Pesto

5 min
GF Gluten-Free DF Dairy-Free V Vegan VG Vegetarian
Avatar by: Lindsay Grimes
March 13, 2021 (Updated: November 15, 2021)
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This images looks into a food processor filled with pesto. The jar sits on a white counter. Text overlay reads "vegan almond kale pesto."
This images looks into a glass jar filled with pesto. The jar sits on a white counter scattered with almonds. Text overlay reads "vegan almond kale pesto."
This images looks into a glass jar filled with green kale almond pesto sauce. The jar sits on a white counter scattered with almonds.
Vegan Almond Kale Pesto is a quick 5 minute recipe perfect for pasta, bread, and crackers! You’ll be spreading this pesto on everything!

I have to admit, this vegan kale almond pesto is my new favorite sauce. I’m always experimenting with easy pestos and sauces to add to our meals. I love a quick pop of flavor that you can use with basically anything!

Once you make your own pesto, you’ll have a hard time finding one that measures up in the store.

I also kind that once you have a jar of homemade vegan kale pesto stashed in your fridge, you’ll be spreading it on everything! You’ll be spreading it on toast, tossing it in pasta, dipping your crackers in it!

Almond Kale Pesto is…

Better than store-bought! The thing I love about making your own pesto is you get to customize how much of what is in it!

This pesto calls for kale, but you can add in whatever greens you have stashed away in your fridge! Add some spinach or basil or parsley in lieu of kale.

  • This image looks into a food processor filled with kale, almonds, garlic, and nutritional yeast. The food processor sits on a white counter.
  • This images looks into a food proecessor filled with pesto. The jar sits on a white counter.
  • This images looks into a glass jar filled with pesto. The jar sits on a white counter scattered with almonds.

Ingredients for vegan kale pesto:

Kale. I love using curly kale, but you can use a mix of kale and spinach, kale and basil, kale and parsley. Really, any mix of greens works here!

Almonds. Always use raw almonds. I used whole almonds but slivered or sliced almonds also works.

Nutritional yeast. This is going to give it a slight cheese flavor to replace the Parmesan that’s traditionally in pestos.

Extra Virgin Olive Oil. This is going to be the base of the pesto to make it nice and saucy.

Garlic. I used two garlic cloves which I thought was perfect, but you can definitely bump up the number of cloves if you want a more garlicky pesto!

How to make almond kale pesto:

It doesn’t get easier than throwing everything in your food processor or blender and pressing on!

Depending on how powerful your blende is, you may want to pre-pulse the almonds to chop them up before you add in the rest of the ingredients.

Add a tablespoon or two of water to help the food processor chop up the ingredients and thin out the pesto as desired.

This is a side view of a small glass jar filled with green kale almond pesto sauce. The jar sits on a white counter surround with almonds and a white tile background.

How to store this pesto:

Pesto can be kept in your fridge for about a week. Oil may separate and rise to the top, you can reheat in the microwave or set out on the counter to bring to room temperature and mix.

Freeze in an ice cube tray for individual servings that you can pop out and reheat as needed.

More pestos, dips, and sauces to try:

  • Easy Homemade Pizza Sauce
  • Roasted Red Pepper Sauce
  • Avocado Cilantro Sauce
  • Easy Whipped Feta Dip
  • Horseradish Beetroot Dip
  • Vegan Cashew Ranch Dip

Did you make this? Leave a review below and tag me on Instagram, Facebook, or Pinterest!

This images looks into a glass jar filled with pesto. The jar sits on a white counter scattered with almonds. Recipe
GF Gluten-Free DF Dairy-Free V Vegan VG Vegetarian

Vegan Almond Kale Pesto

Vegan Almond Kale Pesto is a quick 5 minute recipe perfect for pasta, bread, and crackers! You’ll be spreading this pesto on everything!

AvatarRecipe by:Lindsay Grimes
★★★★★ 5 from 1 reviews
Prep: 5 minCook: 0 minTotal: 5 min
Print recipe Rate recipe Pin Save recipe
Servings: 1 cup 1x

Ingredients

  • 2 cups kale, de-stemmed and roughly chopped
  • 1/2 cup raw almonds
  • 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
  • 1/4 cup nutritional yeast
  • 2 cloves garlic
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 2 tablespoons water (as needed to thin out the pesto)

Instructions

  1. Place the kale, almonds, oil, nutritional yeast, garlic, and salt in a food processor. 
  2. Turn on the food processor and process until chopped up. Take breaks to scrape down the sides as needed. 
  3. If you food processor needs help bringing the pesto together, add some water, one tablespoon at a time, as needed. 
  4. Transfer to a jar and keep in the fridge for about 1 week. 

Nutrition Info:

  • Serving Size: 2 tablespoons
  • Calories: 169
  • Sugar: 0.3g
  • Sodium: 158mg
  • Fat: 15.9g
  • Saturated Fat: 2.1
  • Unsaturated Fat: 0g
  • Trans Fat: 0g
  • Carbohydrates: 5.6g
  • Fiber: 2.3g
  • Protein: 4.1g
  • Cholesterol: 0mg
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  1. AvatarRamya says

    Posted on 3/15/21 at 5:09 am

    will be making this soon i love pesto sooooooooooo much perfect for pizza and pasta will dm you if i make this and let you know how it goes Thanks Ramya

    Reply
  2. AvatarClare says

    Posted on 5/1/22 at 10:15 am

    Made this tonight opted for sunflower oil as didn’t have olive oil and it’s fantastic! Wonderful flavour , perfect for pasta , or spreading on …well everything or for dipping into! Thank you for this recipe!

    ★★★★★

    Reply
    • AvatarLindsay Grimes Freedman says

      Posted on 5/12/22 at 11:29 am

      Delish! I’m so happy you enjoyed 🙂

      Reply

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Lindsay

Hi Friend!

I'm Lindsay I love sharing simple, better-for-you recipes. When I'm not in the kitchen, you can find me at the beach watching my kids boogie board and soaking in that warm Cali sun (with sunscreen, of course).

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GF Gluten-Free DF Dairy-Free V Vegan VG Vegetarian EF Egg-Free NF Nut-Free P Paleo Browse All

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