Go Back

Creamy Kale Pesto White Bean Dip

5 from 5 reader reviews
Prep Time 25 minutes
Total Time 25 minutes
Servings 2 cups
Print Recipe Pin On Pinterest Leave Review

Ingredients

  • ¾ cup shelled sunflower seeds, toasted
  • 1 cup chopped kale, lightly packed
  • 1 teaspoon dried oregano
  • 3 cloves garlic, peeled and chopped
  • ¼ cup lemon juice, divided
  • 3 tablespoons nutritional yeast, divided
  • sea salt and pepper, to taste
  • ¼ cup virgin olive oil
  • ⅓ cup ice water, divided
  • 1 ½ cups cooked white beans, drained and rinsed
  • ⅓ cup tahini
  • 1 teaspoon coconut aminos (or tamari soy sauce)

Instructions

  • In the bowl of a food processor fitted with the “S” blade, combine the sunflower seeds, kale, dried oregano, garlic, 2 tablespoons of the lemon juice, 1 ½ tablespoons of the nutritional yeast, salt, and pepper.
  • Pulse the motor of the food processor until the sunflower seeds are finely chopped and you have a dry paste texture.
  • With the motor running, pour the olive oil into the food processor through the feed tube. You should have a chunky paste at this point. Add a splash of the water to make the texture a bit more fluid and creamy. Check the pesto for seasoning and adjust if necessary. Reserve 3 tablespoons of the pesto in a bowl and set aside.
  • To the kale pesto in the food processor, add the remaining lemon juice, white beans, tahini, and coconut aminos. Run the motor until you have a creamy mixture. Then, with the motor still running, drizzle the remaining ice water through the feed tube.
  • Your finished dip should be super creamy and lush. Check the seasoning of the kale pesto white bean dip one more time and adjust if necessary with salt, pepper, possibly more lemon, nutritional yeast, and coconut aminos. This is personal taste!
  • Serve the dip at room temperature with cut vegetables, crackers, crostini etc. Leftover dip keeps in a sealed container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.

Equipment

Recipe Notes

  • I like to save a bit of the pesto before I throw all of the white beans, tahini etc in because I think it looks pretty swirled on top of the finished dip. If you don’t care about this as much, you can just slam all the ingredients into the food processor and mix it up in one step, drizzling the ice water in via the feed tube at the end!
  • Basil, cilantro, and ramp greens would all be great in place of the kale.
  • The quality of your tahini will make a huge difference! I like Soom and Seed + Mill brands.
Creamy kale pesto white bean dip is a delicious, super savoury, slightly cheesy, naturally vegan, and nut-free appetizer that everyone will enjoy.