Vegan Avocado Basil Dressing

Name: Vegan Avocado Basil Dressing
Total time: 10 min
Ingredients: 1 large bunch fresh basil (washed and stems removed); 1 lemon (juiced); 1 tsp blue agave nectar (🥕see notes below); 1/2 large avocado; 1/4 C water; 1 pinch sea salt (I suggest 1/8 tsp or less)

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Vegan Avocado Basil Dressing 🌱 This easy, healthy, oil-free salad dressing recipe has it all. Creamy, citrusy, and subtly sweet with the perfect herbal balance of basil and richness of avocado. GF

Vegan avocado basil dressing in a dish next to a salad and roasted root vegetables.

There's a local cafe that my hubby John and I enjoy for a quick lunch. We always share a veggie sandwich & side salad which comes with a fantastic creamy basil dressing. I wanted to try to create an oil-free version of their dressing and boy did I come close. The flavor was spot-on, but it just wasn't quite as creamy. So I decided to throw in some avocado. Wowza!

I love pouring a dollop of this vegan avocado basil dressing on salads and roasted veggies. Try it on our Vegan Roasted Root Veggies or Lemon Roasted Potato Wedges.

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Close up image of a salad with roasted root vegetables topped with vegan avocado basil dressing.

Here is all you'll need to prepare this quick & easy dressing.

Equipment

🥕See printable recipe card below for quantities & complete details

Ingredients

Fresh basil
Lemon juice - fresh
Blue agave nectar - can be substituted with maple syrup or vegan honey
Avocado - fresh, ripe
Water
Sea salt

Instructions

Place basil, agave nectar, lemon juice, and salt into food processor or blender
Pulse until basil is completely pureed.
Add avocado, continue to puree.
Gradually add water, a little at a time, until dressing is a consistency you like.
Add salt to taste (I suggest ⅛ teaspoon or less)
That's it. Enjoy!

🥕Helpful tips

If you prefer not to use agave nectar, you can use maple syrup or vegan honey.
The original version of this recipe includes 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil. If you want your dressing to be creamier, you can substitute water with olive oil or avocado oil.
Since this recipe includes fresh avocado, you will want to prepare it right before serving. You can combine all the other ingredients in advance, but the avocado should be added at the last moment. Only make enough dressing for one day, as it will likely discolor after a few hours.

🥑 FAQ's

How to pick a perfectly ripe avocado

Select your avocados based on when you plan on making the dressing. If you want to prepare it the same day, choose ripe (not over-ripe) avocados. A ripe avocado will be fairly firm, but will yield to light pressure. The skin will be snug to the fruit, not brittle or pulled away. A perfectly ripe avocado will be neither hard nor mushy.

My husband always checks to see that the stem is still intact on the avocados he buys. If it has been removed, the avo will tend to over-ripen from the top, so he only buys the ones with the stems.

There’s a fine line between ripe and over-ripe and you’ll know it when you cut into an avo. One of the first signs of it being too ripe is the color of the flesh. Once those brown spots show up, it’s too late. Another way to check if it’s over ripe is by smell. An acrid or sour smell is a sure sign that you won’t be using that avocado.

If you don’t plan on using your avocados the day you buy them, it’s better to error on the side of caution and choose firmer ones. If you have ripe avos that you won’t use the same day, put them in the fridge. It will slow down the ripening process and might give you a few extra days to use them.

If you love this yummy dressing, be sure to check out these other easy & delicious vegan recipes!

avocado basil dressing and roasted root vegetables on a plate

very vegan 🌱 very good

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ If you’ve enjoyed this recipe, please rate it in the comments below. Sharing your experience helps others decide if they should give it a try too. Thanks a bunch!🥕