Today we are making a creamy vegan avocado pesto pasta with sundried tomatoes. This recipe is easy to make, requires 9 simple ingredients, and is ready in 20 minutes. Did we mention that it is packed with flavor, too? It’s perfect for dinner date nights at home or for lunch on the go!

This is one of our favorite meals to enjoy on a busy weeknight. It comes together in no time and makes for great leftovers. When we find avocados on sale at the market, this is one recipe we always go back to!

Here’s What Need to Make This Creamy Avocado Pesto Pasta

• Avocados: Hass avocados work best for this recipe. They’re super creamy, loaded with vitamin C, minerals fiber, and omega-3 fatty acids. They also pack an earthy and nutty flavor that so many other people and we love. 
• Nutritional Yeast: This will help make our vegan pesto have some cheese flavor. Nutritional yeast acts as a Parmesan cheese replacement in this recipe. Nutritional yeast is a good source of B vitamins, zinc, and potassium. 
• Olive Oil: We’ve found that the best type of olive oil to use for pesto is extra virgin olive oil. Since the pesto is prepared raw, the flavor of extra virgin olive oil comes through. 
• Garlic: Fresh, raw garlic cloves are ideal in pesto. We prefer extra garlic in our pesto, but you can use less depending on your preference. 
• Lemon Juice: A squeeze of fresh lemon juice in pesto helps brighten all of the flavors in this pesto recipe. We recommend using freshly squeezed lemon juice over store-bought lemon juice, but I think they may be obvious! 
• Basil: Fresh basil leaves are essential to a fragrant and delicious pesto. We grow our own basil in our home garden, which helps make the pesto even more special. 
• Walnuts: Walnuts aren’t traditionally used in pesto, but they are a more affordable option than pine nuts and are delicious. Walnuts are loaded with healthy fats, fiber, and protein as well. 
• Sundried Tomatoes: To add a sweet but tart taste, we love to add sundried tomatoes to our pesto pasta. Sundried tomatoes can also be chewy in texture which makes the overall bite of the pasta more interesting. 
• Pasta: This recipe works great with gluten-free and wheat pasta, so feel free to make the swap based on your preferences. When it comes to gluten-free pasta, it’s hard to find one that doesn’t break apart easily, but we recommend Banza made from chickpeas. Just make sure you don’t over-boil them! If you are looking for a veggie-centric option, zucchini noodles would also taste great with this pesto. 

Tools Needed to Make This Dish

1. Food Processor: To reach the ideal consistency for pesto, a food processor is recommended. If you don’t own a food processor, a blender would also do the trick, but pulse as you blend to make sure you don’t over-process it.
2. Large Pot: If you’re in the market for new pots and pans, we recommend Caraway Home! 
3. Large Bowl: Looking for a mixing bowl set? Here is one we recommend. 

We wanted to keep this simple and use ingredients that you most likely will have in your home so that you won’t have to be running around or stressing out for your date night or dinner that you are making this for.

We love to top our pasta with red pepper flakes, fresh herbs, and vegan parmesan cheese. Along with our creamy avocado pesto pasta, we enjoyed easy peasy restaurant-style garlic bread. The crunchy texture complimented the creamy pasta nicely, and it was just so dang tasty. We highly recommend it!

Fun Facts About Avocados

• Cinnamon and avocado are in the same family. Pretty wild, right?! 
• Avocado has the most fiber out of any fruit. The average-sized avocado has 9.2 grams.
• 90% of the avocados produced in the US are grown in California. 
• Avocados used to be called alligator pears until the USDA renamed them. 

Looking For More Pasts Recipes?

• Easy Garlic and Herb Pasta (30-Minutes)
• Easy One-Pot Pasta
• Easy Vegan Pasta Primavera
• Creamy One-Pot Taco Pasta (30-Minutes)
• One-Pot Vegan Hamburger Helper (Cheeseburger Pasta)
• Instant Pot Pasta e Fagioli (aka Pasta and Beans)

Make sure you tag us on Instagram @sweetsimplevegan and @consciouschris and hashtag #sweetsimplevegan if you recreate any of our recipes, we love to see your photos!

Easy Avocado Pesto Pasta with Sun-Dried Tomatoes

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• Author: Jasmine @ Sweet Simple Vegan
• Total Time: 20 minutes
• Yield: 8 servings

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Description

Let’s make a creamy vegan avocado pesto pasta with sundried tomatoes. This recipe is easy to make, requires 9 simple ingredients, and is ready in 20 minutes. Did we mention that it is packed with flavor, too? It’s perfect for dinner date nights at home or for lunch on the go!

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Ingredients

• 16 oz. gluten-free rotini pasta
• 2 medium ripe hass avocados
• 3 tablespoons nutritional yeast
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 2–3 cloves garlic (or 1– 1 1/2 tsp garlic powder)
• 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
• 2–4 tablespoons water, as needed
• 2 large handfuls fresh basil
• ½ cup unsalted walnuts
• 1/2 cup sliced sun-dried tomatoes*, sliced into strips
• Salt and pepper, to taste

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Instructions

1. Prepare your pasta according to packaging directions.
2. In the meantime, prepare the avocado pesto. In a food processor, add in the avocados, nutritional yeast, olive oil, garlic, lemon juice, and 2 tablespoons of water. Process until well combined and as smooth as you can get it.
3. Add the basil, walnuts, and a big pinch of salt and pepper to the food processor. Pulse until it reaches your desired consistency. You can make this as smooth or as chunky as you’d like. We prefer ours a bit chunky.
4. If you would like, you can add additional water to thin out the sauce. Adjust seasoning to taste.
5. Once the pasta has cooked, drain it and transfer it back into the pot. Add in all of the avocado pesto and mix until uniform. Add in the sun-dried tomatoes and mix until well combined. Dig in!

Notes

• We used dry sun-dried tomatoes. In order to hydrate them, add them to a medium bowl, cover them with boiling water and allow them to soak for 30 minutes. After 30 minutes, drain the tomatoes and cut them into slices. If you are using sun-dried tomatoes packed in oil, simply remove them from the oil, shake off as much excess oil as you can, and add them into the pasta. These are usually sliced but if not, slice them into strips.
• This pesto keeps for about 2 days in an airtight container in the refrigerator. Due to the avocado, oxidizes fairly quickly and is best served when it is made.
• If you would like, you can leave out the walnuts or replace them with almonds or pine nuts.

• Prep Time: 10 minutes
• Cook Time: 10 minutes
• Category: Entree, Pasta
• Method: Stovetop
• Cuisine: Vegan

Keywords: Entree, Pasta, Avocado, Pesto, Vegan