Wild Garlic Pesto (Vegan)

Wild garlic or ramsons (bärlauch, literally bear leek in German) are everywhere at this time of year. It’s the first edible thing, really, to pop up in the spring and people are obsessed for the first little while before everyone gets sick of it closer to the end of the season. This vegan wild garlic pesto is a great way to use the abundance of this spring green, even if you don’t get tired of it.

It’s on the thicker side, so it can be used as a sandwich spread as well as in pasta, pizza, and wherever else you’d usually use pesto. The paler green colour is because it has a pile of seeds in it – which also makes it surprisingly high in protein – and the flavour of the wild garlic comes through without being overwhelming.

If you live in the US or Canada, you might be more familiar with ramps, not ramsons. Ramps are wild leeks but the flavour is very similar and they can be used interchangeably in this recipe. They can be found pretty readily at farmer’s markets around this time of year, maybe a little later depending on where you live, and have risen in popularity in the last few years.

To harvest wild garlic yourself, it is best to go with someone knowledgeable because it looks similar to lily of the valley, which is poisonous. It is easy to tell if you crush the leaves slightly and smell them, because wild garlic has such a strong smell, but it’s not a mistake you want to make.

For some more great early spring recipes, try my lemon rhubarb cake and rhubarb chia pudding. Try using this pesto as a dressing alternative in this asparagus potato salad, too.

Ingredient Notes and Substitutions

• Hemp hearts: this must be hearts, not seeds. The seeds contain a hard outer layer that won’t blend into a smooth pesto.
• Sunflower seeds: substitute pine nuts if you want a more traditional style of pesto.

Recipe Notes

My food processor isn’t particularly strong, so my pesto isn’t completely smooth. It’s still good but a high powered processor will result in a smoother texture.

If you want a thinner pesto to use as pasta sauce, for example, keep the recipe as is, but thin it with some pasta water from cooking. This makes the perfect sauce that will coat the pasta just as it should.

How to Store

Storage: keep the pesto in a sealed container in the refrigerator for up to five days.

Freezing: I haven’t tried freezing this and I think it would separate after thawing.

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Expert Tips

• Use an immersion blender: if you don’t have a food processor, a decent immersion blender is a fraction of the price, much easier to store, and works very well for recipes like this one.
• Add the oil second: mixing while adding the oil in a slow stream emulsifies the mixture, making it creamiet and less likely to separate when stored.

More Vegan Spreads

Green Pea Hummus
Split Pea Spread
Avocado Aioli
Sweet Potato Red Lentil Dip

If you make this Wild Garlic Pesto or any other vegetarian dips on Occasionally Eggs, please take a moment to rate the recipe and leave a comment below. It’s such a help to others who want to try the recipe. For more OE, follow along on Instagram, Facebook, and Pinterest, purchase the Occasionally Eggs cookbook, or subscribe for new posts via email.