Avocado Pesto Pasta
Make your pesto extra creamy and rich by adding ripe avocado! This avocado pesto recipe is lovely on pasta, sandwiches, vegetables and more.
Posted by Kathryne Taylor on June 24, 2025
Avocado pesto is a deliciously creamy and fun variation on classic basil pesto. This avocado pesto recipe replaces the olive oil with avocado, in addition to the usual basil, Parmesan and pine nuts (in these photos, I used pepitas instead, which are lovely as well). A squeeze of fresh lemon brightens and complements the flavors, and helps keep the avocado green.
You can use avocado pesto on pasta, of course. It makes a stellar veggie dip and sandwich spread, too. You’ll find more uses and tips for it below. The one caveat is that avocados brown with time, so it’s best used immediately or stored in a jar until you’re ready to serve.
Avocado Pesto Serving Suggestions
Pasta
Try this pesto on spaghetti or twisted shapes like fusilli. If you like saucy pasta like I do, this recipe nicely coats 8 ounces of pasta, although you can stretch it to lightly coat 12 to 16 ounces of pasta.
Tips: Reserve some of the starchy cooking water and add splashes of it along with the pesto to help loosen it up. Try to wait until the pasta has cooled somewhat to stir in the pesto. If you intend to have leftovers, store the pesto and pasta separately for optimal results, since the color starts browning fairly quickly once it’s exposed to air and heat.
Veggies: Grilled, roasted or raw
This avocado pesto will take basic vegetables to the next level, whether you serve it as a dip on the side, swoosh it underneath or dollop it on top. It would be especially nice with bell peppers, carrots, tomatoes, mushrooms or artichokes.
Sandwiches or toast
Spread this pesto on crusty bread and add sliced tomato and mozzarella for a fantastic summertime sandwich. I can also attest that it’s lovely on toast with a fried egg on top for breakfast.
More Unexpected Pesto Recipes to Try
- Arugula-Almond Pesto Pizza
- Basil Pesto Salad Dressing
- Broccoli Pesto Pasta with Green Olives
- Double Tomato Pesto Spaghetti with Zucchini Noodles
- Pesto Pasta Salad
Please let me know how you serve your avocado pesto in the comments! I love hearing from you.
Avocado Pesto
Make your pesto extra creamy and rich by adding ripe avocado! This fresh basil and avocado pesto recipe is lovely on pasta, sandwiches, vegetables and more. Recipe yields about 1 ½ cups.
Ingredients
- Optional: 8 to 16 ounces pasta (spaghetti or fusilli)*
- ¼ cup pepitas (green pumpkin seeds) or pine nuts
- 2 large ripe avocados
- 2 ounces (¾ cup) finely-grated Parmesan cheese
- 2 medium cloves garlic, sliced into a few pieces
- 3 tablespoons lemon juice
- ¼ teaspoon fine salt, to taste
- ⅔ cup (1 ounce) lightly packed fresh basil leaves
Instructions
- If you’re using this avocado pesto on pasta, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil and cook the pasta according to package directions.
- Toast the pepitas or pine nuts to bring out their best flavor. Pour them into a small skillet and cook over medium-low heat, stirring frequently (don’t step away, or they might burn), until they are fragrant and turning lightly golden on the edges, about 3 to 4 minutes. Transfer them to a bowl to cool.
- To make the pesto, pit and halve the avocados and scoop the insides into the bowl of a food processor. Add the Parmesan, garlic, lemon juice, and salt. Blend until smooth, pausing to scrape down the sides as necessary.
- Add the toasted pepitas and basil, and pulse until they are broken down into tiny pieces and the mixture is well-blended. Taste, and mix in more salt if the mixture doesn’t taste awesome yet. This pesto is best used immediately, but it will store well for up to 3 days in the refrigerator (try to press out any air bubbles in the mixture, as they will brown more than the rest).
- To toss it with pasta: Reserve some of the pasta’s starchy cooking water before draining, then return the pasta to the pot. Add splashes of the reserved water with the pesto to help loosen it up and coat the noodles (I used about ¼ cup pasta cooking water on 8 ounces pasta). If you intend to have leftovers, store the pesto and pasta separately for optimal results, since the color starts browning fairly quickly once it’s exposed to air and heat.
Notes
Recipe adapted from my Avocado Pesto Toast.
Make it dairy free/vegan: Omit the Parmesan cheese. You might like to top your dish with vegan Parmesan.
*Pasta quantity: I like well-sauced pasta, so I recommend using this pesto on 8 ounces pasta, but it can lightly coat up to 16 ounces pasta.
Nutrition
The information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice. See our full nutrition disclosure here.
This looks yummy – love avocado! I make my pesto with garlic scapes from my garden. Just made a double batch yesterday – and used it to make a chicken flatbread for dinner…so good!!
Your garden pesto sounds amazing!
Thanks! It’s such a great way to use up all the scapes from my garlic bed!
How do you think this would work with parsley instead of basil?
(parsley is easier to get…right in my garden:)
Sounds great! Looking forward to trying this….soon,
Hi Barbara! It won’t taste much like traditional pesto with basil, but it would be a lovely herbed avocado sauce, for sure.
Sounds delicious! Allium allergy here. Substitutions you would recommend please for the garlic?
Hi there, I would just omit the garlic since this recipe is brightly flavored by the other ingredients.
Where’s the olive oil mentioned in the description?
Does the avocado replace the oil?
Hi Cecelia, good question, and I’m sorry for the confusion! The avocado replaces the oil.
This was delicious with pasta for dinner and then we had it again for breakfast spread on toast. So easy and yummy and versatile! Thank you Cookie and Kate!
I’m so glad to hear it! Thank you, Maryann!
The taste was good but it was way too thick and didn’t blend well. What can you do to make it creamier
Hi Jon, I’m sorry to hear you had trouble. Did you use a food processor? Mine has always blended nicely with some time but you could try blending in up to 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil with the machine running to loosen it up.
I just saw this on IG and made it because I had all of the ingredients. INCREDIBLE! It tastes like a summer garden! It’s now my go to pesto recipe.
Do you have recipes that substitute basil for sprouts (microgreens), spinach, parsley, cilantro, etc. ???
Hello, do you mean substituting other greens for basil? You can definitely switch up the herbs and incorporate other greens like spinach or arugula if you prefer or that’s what you have on hand, or you can search the recipes by ingredient, because I have lots of recipes with all of those.
Your recipes are all very enjoyable! I think you must try this too though!
Hi Maureen, I am a big fan of Pinch of Yum.
Delicious and easy weeknight dinner! I ran out of basil but thankfully had some baby spinach on hand and used that. It was great! I might experiment and try it with walnuts next time.
The pesto is also so versatile. I’m tempted to make avocado toast with the leftover pesto tomorrow for brunch, as it’s a nice thicker consistency. Another winner – thank you for your wonderful recipes, Kate!
Looking forward to trying this. My question is this. When I make guacamole and other dips using avocados, the avocado turns brown, regardless of how much lemon or lime juice I add… or how I try to store it in the refrigerator. Does this go brown if I try to use it the next day on toast for example?
Hi Darel, the best way to store guacamole or an avocado based dip is to pack it tightly and evenly in a container, and cover it with cling film pressed into the dip or sauce, and then an airtight lid so it is difficult for air to get in. The brown color is just a result of oxidation. I hope this helps!
Super easy, super delicious, and super nutritious! I always use sunflower seeds instead of pine nuts or walnuts or, whatever, for extra protein. They’re inexpensive, too. Didn’t bother to toast them. I used the Trader Joe’s brand of roasted and salted sunflower seeds, and therefore skipped the salt in the recipe. I am serving this tomorrow night and will try storing it with a layer of olive oil on top, as I’ve heard that is a way to keep pesto green. Will report back. Thank you, Kate. You are my go-to recipe queen!