This creamy avocado pasta with yogurt, fresh herbs, and lime is a light and easy recipe made for summer meals! It’s the perfect mashup of Italian and Southwestern flavors in a zesty homemade pasta sauce.
Serve with your favorite noodles, or use zucchini noodles for a low-carb option. For another easy pasta dinner, try this chicken pasta primavera and or this vegetarian red pepper pasta sauce.
My avocado pasta recipe is a flavor and creaminess overload! By blitzing a summery mix of avocado, fresh basil, cilantro, onion, and yogurt with a squeeze of lime, I made a flavorful pasta sauce that’s lighter than my cream-based pesto alfredo, but just as creamy. Toss with fettuccine or your favorite pasta to have dinner ready in 20 minutes or less. It belongs on your table ASAP!
An Avocado Pasta That You’ll Make All Summer
- Cream sauce, but make it light. By swapping heavy cream for plain yogurt, this blended avocado pasta sauce is light, creamy, and tangy. Of course, if you’re after a richer sauce, you can always swap the cream back in!
- Fresh ingredients. The sauce is packed with summer ingredients like zesty lime and cilantro, fresh basil, and green onions.
- Italian meets Tex-Mex. Avocado pasta goes just as well with a side of chips and guac as it does with a plate of caponata.
- The best part? This avocado and yogurt sauce doubles as an easy dressing for a cold pasta salad. Save those leftovers!
Gather Your Ingredients
This recipe is like a creamy version of my avocado pesto pasta, with ingredients inspired by my Southwestern avocado and yogurt dip. I’ve covered the important ones with notes below. Scroll down to the printable recipe card after the post for the full recipe details.
- Pasta – Any kind, but I love fettuccine with the creamy sauce. Other good options are linguine, tagliatelle, pappardelle, penne, and rigatoni. But really, anything goes.
- Avocado – Choose a ripe avocado that’s dark green and firm, yet soft (not mushy) to the touch. Remove the pit and scoop the avocado out of the skin.
- Basil and Cilantro – Fresh herbs are best! If you don’t have (or like) cilantro, flat-leaf parsley is a good substitute. If you’re stuck without fresh herbs, you can use dried, though you’ll need to triple the amount in this case. You could also use basil pesto (or parsley pesto or spinach pesto) to add flavor to the sauce.
- Green Onions – Only the white parts, sliced up thin. Shallot or another mild onion will also work here.
- Lime Juice – Freshly squeezed. Lemon also pairs nicely with the avocado and herbs.
- Yogurt – I use nonfat plain or Greek yogurt to keep the sauce light and tangy. If you’d prefer a richer pasta sauce, swap yogurt for sour cream, cream cheese, heavy cream, or half-and-half.
- Parmesan Cheese – Shaved or grated, for serving. You could also crumble over feta or goat cheese.
Tips to Remember!
- If you find the sauce is too thick, add more water, one spoonful at a time, until it reaches your desired thickness.
- Salt your pasta water. This is an easy step to building flavor with well-seasoned pasta. Add 2-3 heaping spoonfuls of salt to the water you’ll use to boil the noodles.
- Use zoodles instead of noodles. Try zucchini noodles for a low-carb option.
What Else Can I Add to This Creamy Pasta Recipe?
I’ll sometimes stir in leftover mushroom fajitas or steak fajitas to really play into the Tex-Mex flavors of the cilantro and avocado in this pasta recipe. But loads of other add-ins go well here:
- Protein. Juicy grilled chicken, sautéed shrimp, or cooked, crumbled bacon would taste great here.
- Veggies. Add any pre-cooked or leftover veggies you’d like! Try sautéed or grilled asparagus, cherry tomatoes, broccoli, sweet corn, peas, green beans, bell peppers, and mushrooms. You could also stir in wilted spinach or kale.
- Zhoug. Boost the herby flavors with a spoonful of homemade zhoug sauce (spicy cilantro sauce).
- Pepper flakes. Add a sprinkle of crushed red pepper flakes or a drizzle of chili oil.
- Breadcrumbs. Toasted panko breadcrumbs are a great last-minute topping that adds a nice crunch.
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- Food Processor – Essential for blending the avocado sauce until smooth and creamy.
- Pasta Pot – You’ll need a roomy pot to boil and toss the pasta.
- Citrus Juicer – Makes squeezing fresh lime juice fast and mess-free.
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Boil the pasta. Cook the pasta according to the directions on the box. Drain the cooked pasta and return it to the pot.
While the pasta cooks, prepare the sauce. In the bowl of your food processor, combine avocado, basil, onions, cilantro or parsley, lime juice, yogurt, water, salt, and pepper. Process until creamy and smooth.
Put it all together. Stir the avocado sauce into the pot with the cooked pasta. Toss until thoroughly combined. Garnish with Parmesan shavings and serve immediately.
- If the sauce is too thick for your liking, add 1 more tablespoon of water.
Calories: 110kcal | Carbohydrates: 9g | Protein: 3g | Fat: 7g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 2mg | Sodium: 32mg | Potassium: 374mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 3g | Vitamin A: 615IU | Vitamin C: 14.8mg | Calcium: 80mg | Iron: 0.7mg
Nutritional info is an estimate and provided as courtesy. Values may vary according to the ingredients and tools used. Please use your preferred nutritional calculator for more detailed info.
How to Make Creamy Avocado Pasta
Follow these steps to make this easy summer pasta. Don’t tell me you’re not hooked at the first bite!
- Cook the pasta. Boil the pasta al dente according to the package directions in a pot of salted, boiling water. Afterward, drain the pasta and return it to the pot. I like to toss the cooked pasta with a little olive oil to keep it from sticking while it sits.
- Meanwhile, blend the sauce. Combine the avocado, basil, onions, cilantro, lime juice, and yogurt in the food processor. Add a little water, season with salt and pepper to taste, and then blend the ingredients until you have a smooth sauce.
- Put it all together. Pour the sauce over the cooked pasta, and stir to coat. Serve right away with a garnish of freshly shaved Parmesan.
Storing and Reheating Leftovers
- Refrigerate. Store leftover pasta in an airtight container in the fridge for 2-3 days. I don’t recommend freezing this recipe, as the pasta and dairy products aren’t ideal when frozen and thawed.
- Reheat. Warm up the pasta in the microwave or on the stove. Be careful not to overheat the sauce, though, or it may split and curdle. I like to add 1-2 spoonfuls of water or milk to help loosen up the creamy sauce.
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