Creamy Avocado Pesto Pasta
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What Do I Need to Avocado Pesto Pasta?
With just a handful of fresh garden ingredients, this flavorful pasta dish is a great choice for a quick meal. To prepare this easy recipe, you'll need:
- Pasta
- Avocado
- Spinach
- Salt and pepper
- Lime juice
- Garlic cloves
- Fresh basil
- Red pepper flakes
- Almonds
- Olive oil or avocado oil
- Sun dried tomatoes
- Parmesan cheese
- Water
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How Do I Make Avocado Pesto Pasta?
With your ingredients gathered, you're almost ready to enjoy this pasta with creamy avocado pesto sauce. Just follow these four steps to prepare this simple recipe:
Step One: Prepare the Pasta
Start by filling a large pot with water and heating it over high heat. Bring the water to a boil, then sprinkle a small amount of salt in. Add the pasta and boil, stirring occasionally to keep the noodles from sticking together. When the pasta is al dente, remove the pan from heat and strain the water out of the pan.
Step Two: Prepare the Avocado Pesto Sauce
Start by toasting the almonds in a small pan over medium high heat. When the pan heats up, stir the almonds constantly to keep them from burning, cooking the nuts for two to three minutes until they're fragrant. When the almonds are toasted, remove the pan from the heat and allow the nuts to cool slightly.
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To prepare the creamy sauce, place the basil, almonds, garlic, avocado, spinach, olive oil, parmesan cheese, and lime juice in your food processor or blender. Pulse to combine all the ingredients. While the food processor or blender is running, slowly add water to the sauce until it reaches your desired consistency.
Step Three: Toss the Pasta in the Sauce
Transfer the cooked pasta to a large bowl and pour the sauce over the top. Carefully stir to coat the pasta in the sauce, making sure not to overmix and break the noodles. Serve the pasta immediately to prevent the avocado from browning.
Avocado Pesto Pasta Recipe Ideas
You'll love how easy this recipe for avocado pesto sauce is to make. And that means it's also simple to adjust the recipe to suit your tastes. Try these recipe ideas the next time you prepare the simple dish.
- Garnish your pasta. Before you serve your pasta dish, try adding some garnishes to give it even more flavor. Top your dish with red pepper flakes to add more spice. Or give the pasta more freshness with the help of sundried tomatoes, fresh basil, or cherry tomatoes. You could also sprinkle some parmesan cheese over the top to add to the flavor of the sauce.
- Pick your favorite noodle. The star of this recipe is the creamy avocado pesto sauce. That means you can top any of your favorite pasta noodles to create this simple dish. I used fusilli pasta in my recipe, but you can use any of your favorite pasta options for your own recipe. You can even try topping your favorite gluten free pasta with this sauce for a flavorful wheat-free meal.
- Make it vegan. You can easily make this simple recipe vegan by leaving out the parmesan cheese. Simply grab your favorite vegan pasta and top it with the avocado sauce for a simple vegan dinner idea.
- Try different nuts. Almonds add a ton of flavor to this pesto sauce, but there are a variety of other nut options you could try if you don't have any almonds on hand. Pine nuts are the traditional choice when making pesto, but other nuts, like cashews, also add a unique flavor to this sauce.
How to Store Avocado Pesto
Since this pesto sauce is made with fresh avocado, it's best if this pasta dish is eaten right away. If you have leftover pasta, make sure to store it covered in an airtight container in the refrigerator. Try to eat the pasta within a day or two because the sauce will begin to brown quickly.
You can also freeze leftover sauce to make it last longer. If you know you'll have extra sauce, set the extra pesto aside and don't add it to the pasta. Place the sauce in a freezer bag and remove as much excess air as possible. You can also pour the extra sauce in ice cube trays to portion out servings more easily. Once the cubes are frozen solid, pop them out of the tray and transfer them to a freezer bag until you're ready to use them.
Creamy Avocado Pesto Pasta
Equipment
- Belnder or Food Processor
Ingredients
- 3 cups pasta I used Fusilli
- 1 avocado ripened (but not overly ripe)
- ¾ cup baby spinach
- Pepper to taste
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
- Juice from two medium sized limes
- 2 garlic cloves
- ½ cup basil
- 1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
- 2 Tablespoons almonds
- 3 Tablespoons olive oil or avocado oil
- 2 Tablespoons sun dried tomatoes
- 2 Tablespoons Parmesan cheese
- ⅓ cup water You might need more depending on the consistency you would like for the sauce
- For garnish: You can add some Parmesan cheese cherry tomatoes, or sun dried tomatoes
Instructions
- Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add a bit of salt to the water. Add the pasta and stir occasionally until ready. Make sure it is soft but still firm to bite so it doesn't break.
- Strain the pasta and set aside.
- Meanwhile, in a small pan, toast the almonds over medium high heat, stirring constantly, for 2 to 3 minutes. Remove them from the heat and allow them to cool slightly.
- In a food processor or blender, add the basil, almonds, garlic, avocado, spinach, olive oil, and lime juice, blend until combined.
- Slowly add in the water until it is your desired consistency. Make sure you don't add too much at a time so it doesn't get too thin.
- Place the pasta in a large and gently fold in the avocado pesto sauce.
- Garnish with pepper flakes, fresh basil, cherry tomatoes, sun dried tomatoes, or Parmesan cheese.
- Serve immediately at room temperature and enjoy!
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