Vegan Creamy Pesto Pizza
It takes just 5 minutes to whip up this creamy, rich, basil bursting, zesty, garlic, peppery sauce. Top with tomatoes and bake. Yum!
It takes just 5 minutes to whip up this creamy, rich, basil bursting, zesty, garlic, peppery sauce. Top with tomatoes and bake. Yum!
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 3/4 cup water
- 3 tablespoons lemon juice
- 1/2 teaspoon pepper
- 2 tablespoons nutritional yeast
- 1 cup raw cashews
- 1 bunch fresh basil (about 40g) ((set aside some leaves f
- 2 cloves garlic ( roughly chopped)
- 1 pizza dough ((store-bought or homemade))
- 1 1/2 cups cherry or grape tomatoes ( halved)
- 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes ((optional))
- Carbohydrate 57.8041817043024 g
- Cholesterol 0 mg
- Fat 64.8050433974359 g
- Fiber 10.2241073734172 g
- Protein 31.8445514425536 g
- Saturated Fat 12.7169637820513 g
- Serving Size 1 1 pizza (376g)
- Sodium 43.4955320579396 mg
- Sugar 47.5800743308852 g
- Trans Fat 3.1967933974359 g
- Calories 876 calories
Step-by-step
- Preheat your oven to 425F and lightly grease a pizza pan.
- To make the pesto: if you don't have a high-speed blender start by adding the cashews to a small pot and covering them with water. Bring to a boil and cook for about 10 minutes until they are tender. Drain and rinse. If you have a high-speed blender, you can simply skip to the next step.
- Add the cashews and water to the blender and blend until smooth and creamy. Now add all of the remaining pesto ingredients and blend until smooth, stopping to scrape the sides as needed.
- To make the pizza: stretch the dough on a well-floured surface to fit your pan. Spread the pesto sauce over the dough, then top with cherry tomatoes. Bake for 18 to 24 minutes until the edges of the crust are golden brown. Finish by garnishing with extra fresh basil and red pepper flakes if using.
The Chemistry of Cashew Emulsions
Swapping raw soaked cashews for pine nuts alters the foundational fat structure of traditional pesto. Raw cashews contain roughly 44 grams of fat per 100 grams, mostly oleic acid, which yields a neutral canvas for emulsification. When blended with water and lemon juice, these fats suspend in liquid to mimic dairy cream without curdling. Nutritional yeast contributes glutamic acid, supplying the savory depth typically derived from parmesan. High-speed blenders pulverize the nut cells completely. Standard blenders require boiling the cashews for ten minutes to soften the cellular walls before processing.
Baking Dynamics and Flavor Development
Basil leaves contain volatile aromatic compounds that degrade rapidly under intense thermal radiation. Baking the pizza at 425 degrees Fahrenheit for 18 to 24 minutes requires balancing crust browning with herb preservation. Cherry tomatoes release free water during baking, creating localized pockets of acidity that cut through the dense cashew fat. Reserve half the fresh basil leaves until after the oven cycle finishes. This technique prevents the delicate herb oils from volatilizing prematurely while maintaining bright green color and pungent flavor compounds.
