15-Minute Vegan Avocado Pasta

5 from 4 votes

This post may contain affiliate links. Please read our disclosure policy.

If you’re looking for a quick pasta recipe that’s perfect for a weeknight dinner, this vegan avocado pasta is for you. It takes just 15 minutes to make. All you need is a food processor to whip up the no-cook sauce that has ripe avocado, arugula, garlic and fresh lemon juice. 

15-Minute Vegan Avocado Pasta

Why You’ll Love This Recipe

It is a quick no-cook sauce. Pasta is one of the fastest things you can make for dinner. Sometimes you don’t have time to simmer a sauce on the stove to go with it. Here you can use a food processor to do the work.

Avocados are a superstar ingredient for so many reasons. They add creaminess and richness to this vegan sauce, all while being full of vitamins, good fats and nutrition. Think of it as a healthy version of a cream sauce.

From avocado toast to guacamole, there are so many ways to use avocados. Why not add pasta to that list? This recipe celebrates all the things you can do with an avocado and takes advantage of this tasty and convenient ingredient.

The Ingredients

Ingredients including avocado, lemon, garlic, spices, parsley, arugula and pasta.

This is what you need:

  • Avocado: The recipe calls for one ripe avocado. There is no 100% foolproof way to tell if an avocado is ripe, but there are a few good signs. Look for dark green skin. When you gently press it, a ripe avocado should have some softness and give. Also, the stem should be easy to remove, but still green underneath.
  • Pasta: Long noodles are great with creamy sauces. You can use spaghetti, bucatini, fettuccine, tagliatelle or pappardelle. Avoid angel hair pasta because it is too thin and delicate.
  • Arugula is the second most important ingredient in the sauce, just behind avocado of course. Baby arugula is pleasantly peppery and adds more vibrant green color. 
  • Garlic: Including 2 garlic cloves, gives the right amount of fresh garlic flavor.
  • Lemon is fresh, zesty and citrusy. Even though lime juice is more typically paired with avocados, lemon juice works with them too.
  • Red pepper flakes, salt & pepper season the sauce.
  • Olive oil: Use high-quality extra virgin olive oil for the best taste. This is especially important because this is a no-cook sauce. It is the same advice that I would give for making vinaigrette for a salad.
  • Fresh herbs: You can finish the pasta with chopped fresh parsley or minced chives or a mix of both.

Optional Additions

You can toss more ingredients into the pasta. This is actually a great way to use leftovers raw or roasted ones. Think about what’s in season.

  • Arugula: You can stir baby arugula leaves into the finished pasta dish.
  • Tomatoes: Try either halved cherry tomatoes or diced tomatoes. If they are raw, they need to be nice and ripe, so this would be best do during the summer and peak tomato season. Roasted tomatoes would be great too. 
  • Sweet corn: You can use canned corn, just drain and rinse it. You won’t need the entire can. If you have some grilled or roasted corn that would be even better.
  • Roasted vegetables are a good addition especially during the fall and winter months. Roasted sweet potatoes, butternut squash or brussels sprouts are all options. During the summer, add roasted zucchini or bell peppers.
  • Protein: You can add roasted or grilled chicken or shrimp or baked tofu.
  • Parmesan cheese: Depending if you need the recipe to be vegan, use regular parmesan or a dairy-free, plant-based version.

How To Make Avocado Pasta

1. Cook the pasta until al dente. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Follow the recommended cook time on the package. Save a 1/2 cup of the pasta cooking water before you drain it.

2. Put the ingredients for the avocado pasta sauce in a food processor. That includes the avocado, arugula, lemon juice, olive oil, salt and pepper.

Pasta simmering in the pot. Sauce ingredients in a food processor.

3. Puree the sauce until it is smooth and combined. It will blend together very quickly.

4. Stir the pasta and avocado sauce together with a splash of pasta water. You probably won’t need the entire half cup. You want the sauce to be silky and coat the noodles. Garnish the pasta with chopped herbs.

Pureed sauce in a food processor. Pasta and sauce stirred together in a bowl.

Serving

A salad is my go-to with most pasta dishes including this one. Try an Italian chopped salad, arugula salad with lemon vinaigrette or brussels sprout Caesar salad. With all these salad recipes, you can make adjustments, so they are vegan.

Storage & Leftovers

You can keep leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator up to 3 days. The lemon juice should prevent it from browning. Reheat leftovers in the microwave or in a skillet with a little olive oil over low heat. 

15-Minute Vegan Avocado Pasta

Recipe Tips

Make sure the avocado is very ripe. As mentioned, it should be soft. This is the best way for the sauce to have a creamy consistency.

Use fresh lemon juice. For every recipe with citrus, never substitute with bottled juice. Slice a lemon in half and squeeze it.

Don’t overcook the pasta. It should be al dente and have some texture and bite to it. Follow the cook time on the package instructions.

This is a quick recipe, so have all ingredients prepped and ready. You can make the avocado sauce while the pasta cooks.

Recipe FAQs

How do you make this recipe gluten free?

The sauce does not contain gluten, so you just need to use gluten-free pasta like chickpea pasta.

Can you make the avocado sauce in advance?

Yes. You can make it up to 2 days ahead of time. Store it in an airtight container in the refrigerator. You can warm it in the microwave. The color may lose some of its brightness. The lemon juice does a pretty good job to keep it from browning. Do not freeze the sauce.

Can you use this sauce for a pasta salad?

You may need to thin out the sauce with a little water, so it coats the pasta better. Even though I recommend longer noodles when eating this warm, shorter shapes are what you need for pasta salad. I suggest penne, rotini or fusilli.

Want to save this recipe?
Enter your email below, and I’ll send it to your inbox. Plus enjoy recipes and cooking inspiration each week.
Please enable JavaScript in your browser to complete this form.

15-Minute Vegan Avocado Pasta

5 from 4 votes
Prep: 5 minutes
Cook: 10 minutes
Total: 15 minutes
Servings: 4
With garlic, arugula, lemon juice and olive oil, this 15-minute vegan avocado pasta is an easy weeknight dinner with a simple no-cook sauce.

Ingredients 

  • 10 ounces bucatini, spaghetti or fettuccine
  • 1 ripe avocado
  • 2 garlic cloves
  • 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
  • 1 teaspoon kosher salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
  • 1 cup baby arugula
  • Juice of 1 lemon
  • 1/4 cup olive oil
  • Chopped parsley or chives for serving

Instructions 

  • Cook the pasta until al dente in a pot of boiling salted water according to package instructions. Reserve 1/2 cup pasta water before draining and transferring the pasta to a large bowl.
  • While the pasta is simmering, you can make the sauce. Combine the garlic avocado, red pepper flakes, salt, pepper, arugula, lemon juice and olive oil in the bowl of a food processor. Puree the sauce until it is smooth and combined.
  • Stir the avocado sauce into the cooked pasta. Add a splash of the reserved cooking water as needed for the sauce to coat the pasta. (You probably will not need the entire half cup.)
  • Sprinkle the pasta with chopped herbs before serving.

Notes

The best pasta shapes for creamy sauces include spaghetti, bucatini, fettuccine, tagliatelle or pappardelle.
You can substitute the arugula with baby spinach or a combination of both.
You can keep leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator up to 3 days. The lemon juice should prevent it from browning. Reheat leftovers in the microwave or in a skillet with a little olive oil over low heat.
You can make the sauce up to 2 days ahead of time. Store it in an airtight container in the refrigerator. Then warm it in the microwave. The color may lose some of its brightness. The lemon juice does pretty well at keeping it from browning. Do not freeze the sauce.
Optional additions to stir into finished pasta (keep in mind if you need to keep the recipe vegan):
  • Arugula
  • Raw tomatoes: halved cherry tomatoes or diced tomatoes
  • Roasted tomatoes
  • Sweet corn: raw, filled or roasted
  • Roasted vegetables: sweet potatoes, butternut squash, brussels sprouts, zucchini or bell peppers
  • Protein: roasted or grilled chicken or shrimp or baked tofu.
  • Parmesan cheese

Nutrition

Calories: 471kcal | Carbohydrates: 59g | Protein: 11g | Fat: 22g | Saturated Fat: 3g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 3g | Monounsaturated Fat: 15g | Sodium: 593mg | Potassium: 451mg | Fiber: 6g | Sugar: 3g | Vitamin A: 233IU | Vitamin C: 13mg | Calcium: 37mg | Iron: 2mg

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

Additional Info

Course: Pasta & Noodles
Cuisine: Italian
Did you make this recipe?Mention @lastingredient on Instagram and tag it #lastingredient!

Author photo

Hi, I'm Paige.

Welcome to Last Ingredient where you will find simple seasonal recipes with plenty of fruits and vegetables, all for the home cook.

Related Posts

5 from 4 votes (1 rating without comment)

Leave a Comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recipe Rating




4 Comments

  1. 5 stars
    I really liked this super creamy sauce. I subbed spinach for the arugula and added charred corn and pine nuts on top and used Banza linguine because we had it in the pantry. Next time, I’ll add 1/2 the lemon and taste the sauce before adding the rest …I think I had a pretty large lemon compared with my avocado …and try it with bucatini. I’d also experiment with roasting the garlic first. Thanks for a yummy dinner!

  2. 5 stars
    Had just a few minutes and a very ripe avocado to spare to throw together a quick pasta dinner, and this recipe delivered DELICIOUSLY!! I also threw in a tablespoon of vegan parmesan cheese and a pinch of red pepoer into the food processor, and my husband, who is not vegan but eats it out of necessity, said it was amazing! Kudos for a quick pasta keeper recipe!👍👏♥️