blissful eats with tina jeffers: Creamy avocado pasta
Thursday, February 16, 2012 at 2:06PM 
In my opinion avocado makes everything taste better, so why has it taken me so long to top my pasta with it? I found myself with some extra avocados this week and wanted some pasta so I decided to combine the two and see what I could come up with. The avocado lends such an unctuousness to the sauce that I may never use cream again.
I love fettuccine Alfredo but never eat it because it is so full of saturated fat and calories. And while this dish is not exactly low in calories, it's full of monounsaturated fat which in studies have found to lower cholesterol and it is thought to prevent inflammation. Avocados are also loaded with 20 vitamins and minerals including vitamin E, vitamin C, folate, fiber, iron and potassium, plus they taste amazing. I don't believe in cutting out all the fat from my diet, what would I be left with to eat? Rice crackers and fat free cheese do not appeal to me at all. There is room in my diet for everything in moderation, I find if I stick with real food, not the kind that comes from a box that I can eat delicious, tasty food without feeling deprived and still be happy with the numbers on the scale.
This dish is perfect for a those nights when you are home late and want to get dinner on the table quick. It comes together in less than 15 minutes and you probably have most of the ingredients on hand. The jalapeno adds a nice touch of heat and the lime zest and juice give a nice bright finish to the dish.
Feel free to experiment with the recipe and make it your own. I can't wait for summer so that I can add some fresh corn and cherry tomatoes to the mix. For a twist, swap out the basil with some cilantro and top it with a little cotija cheese
If you are craving something rich, creamy and ultra satisfying without all the guilt, this dish is for you!
Creamy avocado pasta
Ingredients:
1 medium ripe avocado, pitted
½ lime
2 garlic cloves
¼ jalapeno
¼ cup packed basil
1 cup spinach
1 teaspoon kosher salt
2 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
¼ cup freshly grated parmesan
1 pound whole wheat spaghetti
1 cup spinach
basil leaves to garnish
Method:
Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the pasta and cook until tender but still al dente 9 -11 minutes. Drain and reserve 1 cup of the cooking water. Put the cup of spinach in the bottom of a serving bowl and place the spaghetti on top and toss for a few minutes to wilt the spinach.
While the pasta is cooking make the avocado sauce. Using a spoon, scoop out the flesh from the avocado and place in a food processor. Zest the lime and add along with the basil, lime juice, garlic, jalapeno, basil, spinach, salt and pepper. Blend until smooth.
Pour the sauce over the pasta and toss everything together adding a little cooking water to loosen the sauce as needed. Top with the grated parmesan and basil and serve.
blissful eats, tina jeffers
Reader Comments (35)
This sounds amazing! Just sent it to two friends who literally could be defined by this meal. Love your genius!!
This looks unbelievably good-- can't wait to try it!
Thanks for the kind words Lauren. I could eat avocados every day of the week. I checked out your blog and loved it, can't wait to see more!
This sounds and looks delicious! Will definitely be trying it!
Totally original and beautiful!
I made this tonight for my 23 month old son and he gobbled it up. My husband and I loved it too. This is definitely going into the recipe rotation. Thanks for sharing!!
I made this tonight and it is delicious! Unique and so good! I added some bruschetta tomatoes that I had on hand and it was just over the top good! Thank you for the recipe.
I made this and it was sooo delicious! This recipe goes straight in to my note-book of recipes and I'll make it definitely again. Thank you ;)
I just made this tonight for dinner. It was tasty...but a bit pesto-ish. I think next time I will add more avocado and less basil. I think I may have put too much garlic also..about 6 cloves. But all-in-all, it was good and nice for a change. Thanks!
yum! i'm trying this tonight! one question though, do you serve with wilted spinach or do you add wilted spinach to the sauce? if both, how much spinach in which capacity (i may be overlooking some part of the recipe but can't quite figure that part out!)
many thanks!
I never ever thought of using avocado to make a pasta sauce. This one, in a way, resembles pesto (although there's a limited amount of basil used).
I just bought a very ripe avocado and I can't honestly wait to try this.
Peace
Mike
Yes, I see spinach in the recipe twice. Once under the pasta to be wilted and again in the food processor to be blended. I will watch for a reply, or I will play around with this and see what works. Thank you.
How many servings does this recipe make? Judging by the ingredients... 2? maybe 4? Sounds delicious!
There really REALLY ought to be an option on this page to get a printable version of the recipe!!! Well it looks so good, I guess I'll spend a few minutes making a document :) Thanks.
I really want to make this to take to work for lunch. Do you think it would turn brown, though, if I made it the night before?
I tried it with cilantro (and just a dash of honey) and I put spinach in the sauce and wilted with the pasta. I also added some shrimp, which were so tasty in the sauce. It made at least four servings! We loved it!
This was AMAZING! I just made quarter of the amount given here for myself and even though I feel full, I feel like making another batch and just stuffing myself with this pasta. Super delicious!
I made it and she was soooooo delicius! I had to cook this 3 times in a row for my husband, our guests and my family. Thank you so much for this wonderfull recipe.
Amazing! Just made protein and vitamin bomb this for my kids and they ate it right up! I added avocado oil to the olive oil and creamed spinach to make it even creamier. Thanks for this and so many other delicious recipes!
This looks incredible, I cannot wait to try it. Thanks!
Saw this on Pinterest ---- awesome! can't wait!
What exactly is unctuousness?
Thank you for the insight!
Has anyone tried this with spaghetti squash vs. the wheat spaghetti? Just curious...
Super yummy. This makes for four. I think that the tomatoes I added made it work all the better as well. The sweet of them worked perfectly with the creamy spiciness of the pasta, and made the dish for me.
A wonderful recipe. Delightful to make delicious to eat. Thank you.