Love pesto? Try this creamy pesto quinoa recipe which is bursting with flavour. It is fragrant from garlic & basil, sweet/ salty from slithers of sun-dried tomato, salty from olives & deliciously savoury from nutritional yeast. (Non-vegans can substitute with parmesan if they wish).

By using quinoa as the base instead of rice, this dish is gluten-free. Quinoa & spinach are also great sources of plant-based protein.

This recipe is also quick to make & I love making excess so I can take leftovers for packed lunch.

Serves 3-4

Preparation time: 10-15 mins

Cooking time: 15 mins

Ingredients:

For the pesto sauce:

120g sun-dried tomatoes (no need to slice)

50g fresh basil

25g raw cashews

25g pumpkin seeds

60ml extra-virgin olive oil

2 plump cloves of garlic

1 1/2 tbsp nutritional yeast (for vegans) or  finely grated parmesan

Optional: 1 tsp spirulina powder

2 tbsp water

1/2 tsp salt

The rest:

40g sun-dried tomatoes, sliced into slithers

200g cooked quinoa

16 cherry tomatoes, halved

20 black olives, halved

80g baby spinach

pepper, to taste

Garnish: basil tofu slices, chunks of feta cheese or vegan cheese, basil leaves. Optional: Sprinkle of ground flaxseed, extra drizzle of extra-virgin olive oil.

Method:

Make the pesto. Place the pesto ingredients in a blender of food processor & blitz to form a smooth green paste.

In a large bowl, mix together the pesto with the cooked quinoa & slithers of sun-dried tomatoes, halved olives & cherry tomatoes. Season to taste.

You can gently fold in all the baby spinach leaves or save some as a base…

No bed of spinach

Bed of spinach

Top with feta/ vegan cheese or basil tofu.

Drizzle over with some extra-virgin olive oil. Add a sprinkle of ground flaxseed if desired to add to the nutritional value.

Feta cheese or vegan cheese topping

Basil tofu topping

Don’t forget you can find my favourite recipes in my FREE eBook here.