Vegan, whole wheat spaghetti with avocado spinach pesto...give me all the garlic, all the olive oil, flavors of basil, walnuts! Throw in a couple of avocados and add it to some pasta. We LOVE pesto. I love using it with salads, crackers, veggies sandwiches, and of course, pasta.
I used to not make pesto very often because basil is expensive or I never had enough for a recipe! Then we started growing a herb garden (put together by my in-laws who have a magical green thumb)! But in reality, sometimes, there’s just not enough basil! In comes spinach to save the day. Spinach is more budget friendly than basil, tasty, and also PACKED with nutrients.
Just LOOK at my beautiful basil!
Traditionally, pesto is made of pine nuts but those are also, you guessed it…very expensive. I use walnuts in this recipe but really, any nuts will work wonderfully! I’ve used almonds and even pistachios before. Walnuts are a great source of polyunsaturated fats (I talked about fats in this post's "Nutrition Nook"), are a great vegetarian source of omega-3 fatty acids, fiber, and protein. Adding the avocado gives the spaghetti the perfect amount of creaminess it needs.
This spaghetti with avocado spinach pesto is:
- Vegan.
- SO easy to make!
- Packed with good fats (remember we talked about these at the end of this post??).
- Nutty flavored from walnuts.
- Creamy from avocados.
- Full of basil and spinach.
- Garlicky and lemony.
Here's how you make it:
- Make your chosen pasta. I used whole grain spaghetti in mine.
- Add spinach, basil, walnuts, garlic, avocados, olive oil, lemon juice, sea salt, and black pepper in a food processor and blend it all until smooth.
- Combine it well with the spaghetti.
- Top it with some basil, cherry tomatoes, parmesan cheese/vegan cheese, additional nuts...get creative!
- Devour immediately 🙂
Seriously guys, make it for lunch or dinner today. You won't regret it. This recipe and the Creamy Garlic and Vegetable Pasta are the two pasta dishes that I will happily devour this pregnancy :).
Other recipes that will go well before serving this would be:
Spaghetti with Avocado Spinach Pesto
Ingredients
- 8 oz whole wheat spaghetti
- 1 cup packed basil leaves
- 1 cup packed spinach
- ½ cup walnuts
- 4 cloves garlic
- 2 avocados
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice
- ⅔ cup extra virgin olive oil
- black pepper
- sea salt
Instructions
- Cook the spaghetti according to the package instructions and drain.
- In a food processor, combine basil, spinach, walnuts, garlic, avocados, lemon juice, olive oil, sea salt, and black pepper. Blend until smooth in consistency.
- Add the avocado spinach pesto to the spaghetti until well combined. You can use up all of the pesto with the pasta or save some to eat as a dip later!
- Top with more walnuts, basil, parmesan cheese (if not vegan), or cherry tomatoes and enjoy!
Notes
- You can use any of your favorite pastas in this dish!
Sounds so creamy and delicious! I always put spinach in my pesto too to bulk it up and keep the color a vibrant green. Can’t wait to try this version!
Thank you! Yes, spinach is such an easy way to add nutrients and color 🙂