This creamy, herby, spicy and zesty Avocado Pesto Pasta recipe is just what you need. It is naturally vegan, and gluten-free recipe. I have always loved pesto and avocados. So why not mix the two? The avocados, add a delicious creaminess to the recipe, and we all love a beautifully delicious creamy pasta sauce. The lemon juice adds just the acidity it needs to balance the spice.
I love avocados, so creating recipes to make with avocados makes sense to me now. The development of different avocado recipes started when my daughter Inaaya began her solids journey. The baby version of this pasta recipe was to blitz avocado, nutritional yeast, garlic, lemon juice, cilantro, and basil. I used to blitz it in a blender and make it a very creamy sauce. I used to mix it with pasta and offer it to her, and wow my baby would just devour it!
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What is Avocado Pesto Pasta?
This avocado pesto pasta is a refreshing pasta recipe. It is creamy, spicy herby, and zesty, with a perfect symphony of flavors. I love a good herby, recipe for the summer. The lush green herbs taste extremely delicious during the summer. Many of us try to have a herb garden, and if we are lucky, we are blessed with abundant produce. I love to make pesto, with basil from my herb garden.
This recipe is an inspiration from my love for avocado chutney and the classic pesto. The flavors come out so well, and it is just uber delicious. I love this recipe because it is vegan, gluten-free, flavorful and so versatile.
Why This Recipe Works...
- This recipe gets ready in 30 minutes from prepping the ingredients to cooking the pasta. So this avocado pasta recipe makes for a delicious and easy weekday meal.
- The recipe is naturally vegan and gluten-free. The recipe uses only naturally vegan ingredients. I like to use gluten-free pasta for this recipe.
- I like this delicious creamy avocado pesto sauce, which works perfectly on a toast, or as a dip too.
- This avocado pesto sauce recipe is a great school lunchbox recipe for toddlers to pack some nutrition. All you need to do is adjust the spice level. My recipe uses 1 green chili, but you can skip adding the chili to make this recipe for kids.
- This sauce stays fresh in the refrigerator for up to 4 days, so it makes for a great meal prep or make-ahead recipe.
Expert Tips to Make This Recipe
You want to use perfectly ripe avocados for this recipe, as they are beautifully creamy.
I like to use basil, cilantro, Thai green chili, lemon juice, and avocados. The freshness and herby flavors of basil and cilantro perfectly complement the zesty and spicy flavors of lemon and chili.
Add 1 tablespoon lemon zest, to add sweet lemony notes to this pasta recipe.
I use nutritional yeast in this recipe which adds a cheesy, earthy flavor. Trust me, you won't miss cheese in this recipe. If you would still like to add cheese, add cashew parmesan to keep the recipe vegan. If you are not vegan, you can add the regular parmesan Reggiano to the recipe.
Use protein pasta, like Chickpea Pasta to add protein to the recipe, and make this recipe wholesome.
If you want to make the sauce rich in protein, blitz 7gms of silken tofu to the recipe.
Other Avocado Recipes You Can Make
Use this avocado pesto sauce, over a piece of toasted sourdough. Add some pickled onions, cucumbers, tomatoes, a drizzle of olive oil, sprinkle of red chili flakes, and some vegan feta cheese.
You can add canned washed and drained chickpeas and tahini, to make a deliciously Creamy Avocado Hummus. Enjoy it with a side of Pita bread or as a spread.
Use this Avocado pesto sauce as a dip or sauce for tacos. Trust me it works.
Ingredients to Make this Recipe
Pasta - You can use any pasta of your choice. I like to use gluten-free Rigatoni pasta, but spaghetti works well too.
Water - You will need 6qts of water to boil the pasta
Avocados - You will need the flesh of 1 large avocado for this recipe.
Lemon Juice and Zest - Use lemon juice, as it has the perfect acidity which is not as sharp as lime juice. Add lime zest to add subtle sweet notes to balance the flavor, and make it refreshing.
Garlic - I add about 3-4 garlic cloves for this recipe.
Basil - Use fresh 3oz Italian basil for this recipe.
Cilantro/ Parsley - Parsley is more Italian, but cilantro is more Indian. I like to add cilantro to this recipe, as I always have a bunch in my refrigerator. But you can add either!
Thai Green Chili - I love spicy food, so adding Thai green chili to this recipe for the kick. But, if you cannot tolerate spice, you can skip it.
Nutritional Yeast - Add ¼th cup of nutritional yeast for its cheesy and earthy flavor.
Vegetable Broth - Vegetable broth adds a delicious umami flavor and helps with blitzing the sauce.
Salt - Add salt to the salt to balance all the flavors.
Olive oil - We will be cooking the pasta with good-quality cooking olive oil.
Red Chili Flakes - I like to add red chili flakes for garnishing and a pop of color + the spice.
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Avocado Pesto Pasta (Vegan and Gluten-Free)
These nutrional values are automatically generated. Use them for estimation only.
Equipment
- 1 Food Processor/ Blender
- 1 Pot
Ingredients
Cook The Pasta
- 6 qts Water
- 16 oz Gluten-Free Pasta
- 1 teaspoon Salt
Avocado Pesto Sauce
- 1 Large Avocado
- 3 oz Basil
- ½ Bunch cilantro
- 3-4 Garlic Cloves
- 1 Thai Green Chili Optional
- ¼ Cup Nutritional Yeast
- ½ Lemon Juice + zest
- ½ Cup Vegatable Broth
- ½ Tsp Salt + more as per taste.
Cook The Pasta
- 2 Teaspoons Olive Oil
Garnishes
- 1 Tablespoon Red Chili Flakes
Instructions
Boil The Pasta
- In a heavy bottom pot, add water and let it come to a boil.
- Once the water starts boiling, add the pasta and salt. Cook the pasta as per package instructions.
Make the Avocado Pesto Sauce
- While the water to cook the pasta is boiling prep the ingredients to make the sauce listed under ingredients section to make the sauce.
- Once the water comes to a boil, add the pasta and cook it as per package instructions.
- While the pasta is cooking, in a food processor/ blender jar, add flesh of 1 avocado, basil, cilantro/parsley, garlic cloves, Thai green chili, lemon juice+ zest, nutritional yeast, vegetable broth and salt.
- Blitz until it is pureed into creamy pasta sauce.
Make the Pasta
- In a pan add 2 teaspoons olive oil.
- Use a strainer to strain the cooked pasta and add it to the pan.
- To this add the prepared avocado pesto sauce, and toss over with pasta on low flame until warmed.
- Garnish with red chili flakes and serve warm!
Notes
- The leftovers can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 3-4 days.
- The avocado pesto sauce freezes well in a freezer-safe container for up to a month.
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