With a creamy, veggie-packed sauce, this easy Avocado Pasta is packed with kid-friendly flavor and nutrients. And the whole recipe can be made in about 10 minutes of cooking time.
Avocado Pasta
I’m always looking for delicious ways to serve up healthy fats and veggies in forms that my kids will actually eat. And since 2/3 of my kids love avocado, I figured it was worth trying it in a pasta sauce. This is SO good.
This is a creamy, nutrient-dense pasta sauce that pairs well with any shape or type of pasta. And it has kid-friendly flavor that we adults love too and is so versatile according to what you have on hand. Can’t beat that combination!
This is a delicious pasta recipe as a vegetarian main dish, or you can add cherry tomatoes, diced chicken, peas, white beans, or shrimp. It’s very versatile that way. (You may also like my Avocado Pesto.)
Table of Contents
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Ingredients You Need
To make this pasta recipe you’ll need to have the following ingredients on hand and ready to go.
- Grated Parmesan: I find that this style of Parmesan cheese has the most flavor. You can also use Pecorino or shredded Parmesan.
- Avocado: Fresh, ripe avocado works best in this recipe to make creamy avocado pasta (that doesn’t even need any real cream).
- Lemon: Fresh lemon juice and zest helps add flavor to this pasta recipe.
- Olive oil: A little olive oil helps the sauce to blend and coat the pasta nicely.
- Garlic, optional if you like extra flavor.
TIP: You can make this while the pasta cooks, it’s that fast. You can also add baby spinach and roasted sunflower seeds to make this more like pesto.
Step-by-Step Instructions
Here’s an overview of this recipe so you know what to expect. Scroll down to the end of this post to see the details.
- Prepare your pasta according to package directions.
- Place the rest of the ingredients into a food processor or blender to make the sauce.
- Blend smooth.
- Toss the sauce with the pasta and serve.
TIP: Make sure you let the blender get the mixture super smooth, using the stick that came with it as needed (especially to make sure the garlic gets blended in!)
Frequently Asked Questions
Sure, just omit the Parmesan. You may need to add more salt to get the flavor balanced. Some people enjoy adding a little nutritional yeast to add dairy-free cheesy flavor.
You can make the sauce ahead and store it in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days or in a freezer bag with as much air removed as possible, for up to 3 months. When storing, cover with a thin layer of olive oil to help avoid browning. Thaw at room temperature or in the fridge.
We like to serve with a simple side salad or fruit. You can also add in some extra protein in the form of cooked and diced chicken, steak, ham, or shrimp, or white beans or chickpeas.
Sure, if you aren’t sure if the kids will like the flavor of fresh garlic, which can be rather spicy, you can leave it out.
Yes! A handful of fresh basil or parsley leaves are great in this. Basil in particular is a nice way to add a flavor similar to pesto. You can also add other vegetables such as baby spinach to the blender.
Best Tips for Success
- This sauce is best on the day you make it. But you can store leftovers in the fridge in an airtight container for a few hours without too much browning, but any longer than that and the top (or the part that’s exposed to air) will brown. To prevent that, add a little layer of olive oil to help keep air out.
- Mix in cooked and diced chicken, steak, ham, or shrimp, or white beans or chickpeas to add more protein if desired.
- Dairy-free: Omit the cheese and adjust the salt as needed to make this vegan.
- Gluten-free: Use a favorite gluten-free pasta or a legume or bean based pasta such as chickpea pasta.
- Add a handful of baby spinach and roasted sunflower seeds for a version that’s like avocado pesto.
- Omit the garlic clove if you think the flavor might be too strong for your family.
- Use your family’s favorite type of pasta.
- Add fresh herbs such as fresh basil leaves or parsley. Add cracked black pepper to your serving.
Related Recipes
Comment and rate the recipe below if you have feedback to share when you make it. I’d love to hear from you!
Easy Avocado Pasta
Ingredients
- 1 pound pasta
- 2 medium avocados
- ½ cup grated Parmesan cheese
- ¼ cup olive oil
- 2-4 tbsp fresh lemon juice (from about 1/2-1 lemon, to taste)
- 1 clove garlic (optional)
- salt to taste
Instructions
- Cook the pasta according to the package directions.
- Meanwhile, add the Parmesan, avocados, lemon juice, olive oil, and garlic, if using, to a food processor or blender. (I grate the garlic into the bowl of the food processor or blender on a microplane to ensure it gets thoroughly combined.)
- Blend smooth, stopping to scrape down the sides of the bowl a few times until very smooth. Taste and adjust the lemon juice and salt.
- Stir the avocado sauce into the pasta, starting with a little and adding more to coat the pasta.
- Serve warm or at room temperature as a pasta salad. Season to taste with salt as needed and extra Parmesan.
Equipment
Video
Notes
- Store leftover sauce in the fridge in an airtight container for up to three days by using the juice of a whole lemon in the recipe and covering the top of the sauce with a layer of olive oil. Seal the container. Those steps minimize browning.
- Mix in cooked and diced chicken, steak, ham, or shrimp, or white beans or chickpeas to add more protein if desired.
- Dairy-free: Omit the cheese and adjust the salt as needed.
- Try my Avocado Pesto.
- Omit the garlic if you think the flavor might be too strong for your family
Nutrition
This post was first published April 2020.
Will this sauce freeze well?
I actually haven’t tried freezing it but it lasts well in the fridge for a few days if you cover with olive oil and store in an airtight container
So creamy and cheesy. Definitely will be a repeat in our house. My kid enjoys “green noodles” (spinach spaghetti) and so I thought the green sauce would go perfectly. He didn’t try it, but to be fair we are all under the weather right now and there is a chance he’ll try it tomorrow. Exposure. He enjoys avocado in many other ways, even by itself.
So creamy and delicious! My husband and I loved this! We used orzo and added some garbanzo beans to it. Unfortunately, my nearly three-year-old toddler still refuses to try pasta no matter how it is prepared. Our toddler did enjoy the avocado and garbanzo beans I set aside for him. Our blender is very old (maybe 20 years old???), and I wish I would have used our newer food processor. What blender do you use, Amy? It always looks so nice in your videos.
I’m glad to hear this! The one in the video is from Blendtec.
This was a hit! I only used one clove of garlic but that was plenty. Both my 1 and 2 year olds loved it and I must say, I had it too and it was yummy. For a more adult meal, I’ll add spinach and chicken. Yum!
Oh my goodness! My daughter won’t eat avocado solo, but she devoured this sauce on whole wheat pasta! Thanks for the win!
I’m so glad!
Quick and easy meal! I had some cherry tomatoes that needed to be used, so I sauteed them for a few minutes and added to the pasta. 👍🏼
Not my favorite. It tasted good, but the avocado went bad too fast. I also made a lot of pasta, so now I have leftovers that don’t taste the best. I’d much rather use my avocado for other recipes.
Absolutely delicious! My middle son doesn’t always like pasta with red sauce but loves avocados so I tried this for him. He liked it and said he would have it again.
Thanks for sharing! Ps. I even added some to my pasta with red sauce and it made it nice a creamy.
How would it be leaving out the parm for allergy reasons?
It won’t be as flavorful. Some people use nutritional yeast to make up for some of the flavor for Parm.
This was absolutely delicious! We had this with some chicken for dinner and all very much enjoyed it. Thanks-your recipes never disappoint!
How long does this store after prepared with pasta? Sorry I might have overlooked it!
Why did you take down the recipe for the avocado pesto? i loved that and went to find it just now.
I updated the post and that info is still in the Notes. Just add 2 cup baby spinach and 1/4 cup roasted sunflower seeds for a more pesto-like sauce to the recipe as written!
I usuallly add smoked salmon to the avocado pasta recipe instead of Parmesan.
Hi Amy, thanks for the tip about white beans. Though, I made the recipe yesterday and used chickpeas instead and it turned out really great and my kids loved it :-). It seems chickpeas has a very similar nutty flavor to other nuts and they are a great allergy free alternative for nuts and seeds for this recipe.
Thanks again for the inspiration Amy, be safe and have a wonderful weekend and happy Easter holidays.
This is my kind of food with all natural healthy ingredients and it makes a great breakfast too. I make something similar for me and my family, but with slightly different approach on the nuts and seeds I use. My son is allergic to almost any type of nuts, so I’m extra cautious with this.
Can I substitute the sunflower seeds with anything else that will taste similar, but is not made of nuts and seeds? Or can I just skip the seeds when making the recipe? I really want to try it out, but I’m worried about the seeds.
I haven’t tried it with anything else but you could maybe try some white beans instead? Let me know if you try it!