This easy rocket pesto is fresh, lemony and delicious — a lovely way to use up surplus rocket and a perfect homemade gift from the kitchen.
🍴 Why you will love this recipe
This simple homemade pesto delivers bright, lemony freshness with a satisfying pine nut crunch. Peppery rocket (arugula) combines with sweet basil to give a traditional pesto balance and a vibrant green colour.
Rocket is widely available year-round, but you can substitute seasonal greens or herbs — watercress, spinach, kale, parsley or extra basil all work well, individually or combined.
Use this pesto to elevate pasta, swirl through soups, spoon into toasted sandwiches, or mix with olive oil and vinegar for a lively salad dressing.
📝 What you need
Rocket (arugula) — peppery and bright. Substitute any tender greens or herbs if needed: kale, watercress, spinach, basil or parsley are all good options.
Pine nuts — toasted briefly to release their sweet, nutty aroma and add texture.
Basil — adds a fragrant, sweet note to balance the pepperiness of the rocket.
Vegan Parmesan or nutritional yeast — gives a cheesy, savory depth without dairy. Use your favourite vegan alternative or two tablespoons of nutritional yeast as a substitute.
👩🏽🍳 How to make your Rocket Pesto
For a full, printable recipe with quantities, see the recipe card below.
Toast the pine nuts in a dry pan over medium heat until they just begin to turn golden. Watch them closely so they don’t burn.
In a blender or mini-chopper, pulse the toasted pine nuts with the garlic until finely chopped. Add olive oil, lemon juice and the vegan parmesan (or nutritional yeast) and pulse to combine. Finally add the rocket and basil, season with salt and black pepper, and pulse until the pesto reaches your preferred texture — slightly chunky is ideal.
🔪 Top Tips & FAQs
Don’t over-blitz. Pesto is best with a little texture — pulse rather than run the blender continuously.
Mix herbs freely. Parsley, thyme or extra basil add interesting flavour variations if you want to experiment.
Stored in an airtight container with a thin layer of olive oil on top to protect it, the pesto will keep for about 7–8 days.
Yes. Freeze in ice cube trays, then transfer the frozen cubes to a sealed bag. Use a cube to flavour pasta, soups or sauces quickly.
🍽 If you liked that…
You might also enjoy other vegan recipes from The Veg Space, such as different pesto variations, quick greens dishes and simple dough recipes.
📖 Recipe
Rocket Pesto
Ingredients
- 40 g pine nuts
- 1 garlic clove (or 1 tsp garlic purée)
- 100 ml extra virgin olive oil
- 1 lemon (juice)
- 25 g vegan parmesan or 2 tbsp nutritional yeast
- 50 g rocket (arugula)
- 20 g fresh basil
- ½ tsp salt and a grind of black pepper
Instructions
- Heat a small dry frying pan and toast the pine nuts until they start to turn golden brown.
- In a blender or mini-chopper, blitz the toasted pine nuts with the garlic until finely chopped.
- Add the olive oil, juice of the lemon and the vegan parmesan (or nutritional yeast) and blitz again until combined.
- Add the rocket, basil, salt and black pepper and pulse until the pesto reaches your desired texture.
- Store in a jar in the fridge with a little extra olive oil on top to keep it fresh.
Video
Notes
Don’t over-blitz the pesto — keep some texture by pulsing a few times at each stage.
Swap or add herbs — parsley, thyme or extra basil make tasty variations.
Nutrition
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