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With basil pesto, quinoa, pine nuts, and some of my favorite vegetables, this dish is made up only of things I love! What’s even better, is that it is enjoyed by even my pickiest eater, so if you love pesto, as we do, I definitely suggest you give it a try! Great both with and without vegan Parmesan.

I created this dish our very first week of being vegan, and have been making it ever since. In fact, this may very well be my first vegan dish I ever made without following someone else’s recipe. I guess that kind of makes it special, doesn’t it?

Before going vegan, I used to make a chilled quinoa pesto salad, very similar to this, only served cold, and with some change in the veggies. I think that must be how I got the idea for this. The only thing in my chilled salad which wasn’t vegan would have been the Parmesan I used.

The first time I made this, I believe I added diced tofu as well, because in my omnivorous mind, without something there to take the place of a meat, it was still just a side salad, and not a dinner. I think that may have been the only time I ever added tofu because it definitely doesn’t need it! Taste-wise, I love it without, it’s incredibly satisfying, and this is already packed with protein! Quinoa, pine nuts, broccoli, spinach… all great protein sources.

I believe I mentioned even my pickiest eater enjoys this quinoa dish. My 15 year old daughter is one of the pickiest eaters I’ve ever known, especially since we’ve become vegan in my home. I can’t begin to explain how happy it makes me when we have a night that she is enjoying her food with the rest of us. It may be that my daughter, Annie, is just an absolute fan of pesto, but I also had this recently taste-tested by my friend Patty, who has been exploring a healthier lifestyle. Patty gave it her thumbs up of approval as well, making this dish, vegan made — and omni approved!

Your first step to making this is to prepare the pesto. I know pine nuts can get expensive, which is why sometimes I’ll cheat and use either cashews or a blend of walnuts and cashews. In fact, I used to never use them to make my pesto, but would just buy a small amount and stir them into the dish whole. Now that I’ve found them at Trader Joe’s for a more reasonable price, I’ve been using them for it all. Though you can make great pesto without pine nuts, I definitely prefer using them.

To make the pesto, simply add all the pesto ingredients to your food processor, and mix until smooth. If you are taking the healthier route, and choose simply using nutritional yeast rather than a vegan Parmesan, I’d start with a tablespoon and continue to add more to taste, if needed. Nutritional yeast has a very strong, overpowering taste, and though it definitely adds needed flavor to certain dishes, a little bit can go a long ways, and it’s easy to overdo it. I’ll sometimes use it in my pesto, but actually prefer using Follow Your Heart Parmesan Style Shredded Cheese Alternative.

If I don’t already have my quinoa made, I’ll let it cook while preparing my pesto. Once those two items are ready, and you’re veggies are all prepped, you can begin cooking up this delicious dish! You will begin by heating a little olive oil in a large skillet and adding the diced red onion. Let it cook on medium for about two to three minutes. You will continue to add some of the ingredients, a little at a time, letting things cook in between, making sure all the veggies finish at the same time.

After the onion, you’ll add the mushrooms and garlic, then a half a cup of pesto after two minutes. Once the pesto is added you may need to turn down the heat a little to prevent burning. Be sure to stir occasionally the entire time.

Next you add the zucchini, asparagus, tomato, and another half cup of pesto, turning the heat back up if you previously turned it down. These will now cook for about four to six minutes, until your veggies are either soft or just about your desired tenderness. Now you’ll add the quinoa, the pine nuts, spinach, and remaining pesto sauce. Stir well and cook until spinach is wilted and quinoa is heated through (if it wasn’t already hot). Taste and add in salt and pepper.

When serving, scoop into bowls and top with vegan Parmesan and a few more pine nuts, if desired. Sometimes I won’t have any pine nuts or the Parmesan and will skip them all together. I prefer it with both, but it’s still a tasty dish without.

I’m always so busy making and trying new recipes that we don’t really have those regular meals that we eat every week or two. If we did however, this one would definitely make the cut. Dicing all the veggies takes some time, but cooking this is really pretty simple, and it’s definitely tasty!

If you make this dish and enjoy it as much as we do, please leave a comment below, or take a pic and tag me on Instagram, @veggiesattiffanis!