Creamy avocado dressing coats this beautiful Creamy Avocado Pasta Salad packed with pasta and fresh vegetables! This quick and easy recipe makes a fast weeknight dinner or a refreshing lunch. Also this extremely versatile recipes can be gluten free or vegan!
WHAT IS CREAMY AVOCADO PASTA SALAD?
Like the name implies, Creamy Avocado Pasta Salad is a refreshing pasta salad tossed in a delicious avocado dressing. This tasty salad comes packed with fresh, raw vegetables, cooked penne pasta, and a smooth and irresistible dressing that blends up in no time! This light and airy pasta salad will leave you feeling full and happy!
WHY WE LOVE THIS RECIPE
This yummy salad is made with fresh, natural ingredients making it a great healthy choice for your family. The recipe comes together in about 20 minutes, making it a perfect weeknight dinner or a fast lunch recipe!
It also makes an excellent meal prep recipe! You can quickly make this pasta salad and divide it into lunch containers to pack and eat from all week long!
It’s an extremely versatile recipe, with just a few swaps it could be gluten free or vegan. You can also add extra protein to the recipe by tossing in some fresh cooked shrimp or chicken.
INGREDIENTS IN AVOCADO PASTA SALAD
Pasta– Many different pastas can be used in this recipe. I use penne pasta but you could also use shells, rotini, rigatoni, or elbow.
Vegetables– Corn (frozen or canned work well), cherry tomatoes, purple onion, and jalapeño give a nice crunch to this refreshing pasta salad. If using frozen corn, thaw before using and if using canned corn drain and rinse before using.
Creamy Avocado Dressing- Avocado, lemon juice, garlic, olive oil, salt, pepper, fresh cilantro, and cumin blend together to make a creamy avocado dressing!
HOW TO MAKE CREAMY AVOCADO PASTA SALAD
Start by cooking pasta to al dente, according to the package instructions.
While the pasta cooks, dice the purple onion and jalapeño. I seed the jalapeño but you can leave the seeds if prefer a little heat. Then, slice the cherry tomatoes in half. When the pasta finishes cooking, drain and place the pasta in a large bowl. Add the diced purple onion, jalapeño, cherry tomatoes, and corn to the bowl.
HOW TO MAKE CREAMY AVOCADO DRESSING
In a high speed blender or a food processor, put two medium avocados, peeled and seeded, the juice of 1 lemon, garlic, olive oil, salt, pepper, cilantro, and cumin. Blend on high until smooth and creamy.
Pour the dressing over the pasta and fresh vegetables in the bowl. Scrape the sides of the blender or food processor with a rubber spatula to make sure you get all of the dressing out. Mix the ingredients in the bowl to coat well. Serve immediately and enjoy.
VARIATIONS FOR THIS PASTA SALAD
This recipe is very versatile. By making a few changes this recipe could be gluten free, vegan, or protein packed.
- To make it gluten free, use a gluten free pasta.
- Make this vegan by using a vegan pasta, one that is not made with egg.
- If you are looking to add meat protein to this recipe you can include diced and cooked chicken or shrimp to this pasta salad.
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OTHER PASTA SALAD RECIPES YOU MAY LIKE
Creamy Avocado Pasta Salad
Ingredients
- 8 oz. Penne Pasta
- ½ c. Corn
- 1 c. Cherry Tomatoes halved
- ¼ c. Purple Onion chopped
- ½ Jalapeño seeded, petite diced
Avocado Dressing
- 2 Avocados ripe, peeled and seeded
- 1 Lemon juiced, about ¼ c. juice
- 1 Garlic clove large
- ¼ c. Olive Oil
- 1 tsp. Salt
- ½ tsp. Black Pepper
- ¼ c. Cilantro fresh
- ½ tsp. Cumin Powder
Instructions
- Following the pasta instructions, cook the pasta to al dente.
- While the pasta cooks, dice the onion, seed and dice the jalapeño, and cut the grape tomatoes in half.
- Once the pasta cooks to al dente, drain and put in a large bowl.
- Add the onion, jalapeño, tomatoes, and corn to the bowl with the pasta.
- In a blender, place peeled and seeded avocados, lemon juice, garlic, olive oil, salt, pepper, cilantro, and cumin powder. Blend until smooth.
- Pour the creamy avocado dressing over the other ingredients in the bowl. Toss to coat well. Serve and enjoy!
Notes
- I seed the jalapeño but you can leave the jalapeño seeds if prefer a little heat.
- It’s best to avoid fresh pasta, which doesn’t hold up quite as well.
- For the perfect pasta salad, cook the pasta until just past al dente.
- Use extra-salted water when cooking the pasta and it will be well-seasoned by the time it’s cooked.
- Toss the pasta with about two-thirds of the dressing while it’s still warm, and add the remainder before serving. he warm pasta will absorb the dressing a lot easier.
- Placing avocados in a paper bag with ripe bananas will help them ripen faster.
Avocado is my favorite . Thank you for your recipe. Looking forward to your next post
Thank you so much for your review! Glad you enjoyed it.