Avocado Pesto Pasta with Balsamic Cherry Tomatoes | Nut-free
Nut free avocado pesto tossed with pasta and topped with sweet balsamic roasted cherry tomatoes. Avocado makes a rich and creamy pesto and the cherry tomatoes are a burst of flavor in this easy pasta recipe
Servings: 6
Ingredients
For the Nut Free Avocado Pesto:
- 1 cup packed basil leaves
- 1 large avocado
- 2 cloves garlic
- ¼ cup toasted sunflower kernels
- 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
- 2 tablespoon freshly grated paresan cheese
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
For the Balsamic Cherry Tomatoes:
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 2 cloves garlic thinly sliced or minced
- 2 sprigs of thyme
- 1 pint cherry or grape tomatoes
- 2 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
- Crushed red pepper flakes for garnish, optional
- Basil and thyme leaves for garnish, optional
- Parmesan cheese/nutritional yeast or vegan parmesan for garnish, optional
For the pasta:
- 12 oz pasta 350 gm
- Water
- Salt
Instructions
- First, set a large pot of salted water to boil. Once the water starts boiling, add the pasta and cook until al dente according to package directions. Reserve ½ cup of the pasta water. Drain the pasta into a large mixing bowl.
- While the water is coming to a boil, make your avocado pesto. To make the pesto, add the basil, avocado, garlic, lemon juice, parmesan cheese and sunflower kernels to your food processor or blender. Pulse a few times and then start adding the olive oil. Blend until smooth. Season with salt and pepper, to taste. Set aside.
- While the pasta is cooking, cook the tomatoes. In a large skillet, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the thyme sprigs and garlic. Once the garlic sizzles, add the tomatoes and season lightly with salt and pepper. Once the tomatoes start popping (about 5 minutes), add the balsamic and cook on medium high heat for about five minutes or until the balsamic is reduced and caramelized. Turn the heat off and discard the thyme sprigs.
- Add the avocado pesto to the bowl that has the drained pasta. Stir, adding the reserved pasta water as necessary. Stir gently until the pasta is well coated in pesto. Top with balsamic cherry. Garnish with crushed red pepper flakes, basil, thyme and parmesan cheese, if using. Serve immediately.
Notes
This recipe is not great for leftovers as it will lose its bright green color. If you don’t mind eating discolored brownish looking pesto pasta, you can ignore this note..:).
You can use a chickpea or lentil pasta to make this dish gluten free. You can also use zucchini noodles instead of pasta.
If you cannot find sunflower kernels/seeds, the same amount or pepitas or pumpkin seeds will work as well. Make the recipe vegan by skipping the parmesan cheese in the pesto and garnish or use vegan cheese or nutritional yeast.
You can use a chickpea or lentil pasta to make this dish gluten free. You can also use zucchini noodles instead of pasta.
If you cannot find sunflower kernels/seeds, the same amount or pepitas or pumpkin seeds will work as well. Make the recipe vegan by skipping the parmesan cheese in the pesto and garnish or use vegan cheese or nutritional yeast.