This quick vegetarian pasta is tossed in a creamy avocado sauce that is to-die-for yummy, then drizzled with balsamic dressing for an extra level of flavor! A healthy and satisfying summer dish!
I can’t believe it’s been a year since we bought this house. Time seriously flies. No but really, it does. I remember last year at this time we were chillin’ (more like roasting) on a houseboat down at Lake Powell, excited to come back home and move into our new home! We’re still making it our own but we’ve already done some fun things to the house and there is more to come. In the next couple of weeks we will be painting the house! I’m talking about the outside. And believe me, it needs paint. Right now it is a dirty yellow and brown and looks gross. Now if we could just decide on a color of paint, that would be helpful.
We’re trying to decide between two colors. One is a sage-greenish color which I really like because, my favorite color is green. And when we first started talking about paint colors several months ago, we were pretty sure we wanted green. But then my husband decided we should try out a blue-ish gray, it actually looks almost exactly like the color of the table underneath the pasta in these pictures. They both look good! Decisions decisions….
While I’m mulling over the color options, let’s talk pasta real quick. Everyone knows that avocados go great in pasta, but have you ever used them in the sauce? Oh my gosh, it’s magic. Mashed avocados and a couple of other ingredients will fix up a crazy-flavorful sauce – no milk, no flour, no chicken stock, just avocado goodness. If you make this pasta as-written, it’s vegetarian, but if you’re looking for a way to “beef it up” so to speak, I’d throw some simple grilled chicken on top for a hearty dinner. My favorite part is optional, but sort of not, you need to drizzle some balsamic salad dressing on top. It works soooo well with the avocado sauce – just do it!
Creamy Avocado Pasta
Ingredients
- 8 ounces bow tie pasta - cooked al dente according to package instructions and drained
- balsamic salad dressing (optional)
- ¼ cup shredded parmesan cheese - or Italian cheese blend
- 1 avocado - roughly mashed with a fork
- juice of ½ lemon - (about 1 T)
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 teaspoon dried parsley
- salt and pepper - to taste
- optional: fresh parsley or other herbs, tomatoes, additional cheese
Instructions
- In a food processor or blender combine mashed avocado, lemon juice, olive oil, parsley, and salt and pepper and pulse until smooth. Taste and add salt and pepper if desired.
- Add cooked pasta to a large bowl. Toss with avocado sauce until coated well. Add cheese and stir to combine.
- Serve pasta at room temp or cold. Add tomatoes, fresh herbs, and additional cheese if desired. Drizzle with balsamic salad dressing immediately before eating.
I lovveeee avocado pasta but I never thought to add balsamic. Genius! I also really like to mix some red pepper flakes into the sauce for a kick and top it off with crumbled feta cheese. Delish!
I made this for my parents and they loved it. They honestly never tasted something so creamy and tangy with the DRIZZLE.