Monday: Avocado “Pesto” Pasta
Servings: 4
Calories: 178kcal
Ingredients
- 4-8 ounces of brown rice or soba noodles, or any pasta/noodles of choice*
Avocado “Pesto” Sauce***
- 3/4 cup tightly packed arugula**
- 1/4 cup water, plus more as needed to thin the sauce
- 1-1 1/2 tablespoons lemon juice
- 1 small garlic clove
- 1/2 of large ripe avocado
- 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt, more to taste
- Black pepper to taste
- 2-3 teaspoons extra virgin olive oil (optional but recommended; omit if oil-free)
- 1/2 to 1 cup chickpeas (depends on your appetite)
- 1 small handful of tomatoes: cherry tomatoes, halved (or, regular tomatoes, chopped)
- 1 small handful of arugula or thinly sliced kale (optional)
Instructions
- Cook your pasta/noodles according to package instructions. Drain and rinse under cold water until cooked. Divide the cooked noodles into half: use half for Monday’s lunch and store the remainder in the fridge for Tuesday’s lunch.
- Make the Avocado Pesto Sauce. Add the arugula, water, lemon juice, and garlic to a food processor. Process until broken down and the sauce starts to come together. Add the avocado, salt, pepper, and olive oil. Blend until you have a relatively smooth and creamy sauce. Season to taste, adding more salt/pepper or lemon juice, as needed.
- Assemble. Toss the cooked pasta with the Avocado Pesto Sauce. Add in the chickpeas, arugula, and tomatoes, and any other ingredients to jazz it up. Toss to combine.
Video
Notes
* You will use half of the noodles in Monday’s lunch and the remainder in Tuesday’s lunch.
**If you use kale instead of arugula, remove the thick stems and ribs.
***The Avocado Pesto Sauce can be made up to 48 hours in advance without too much browning (though, of course, it’ll taste freshest if made the morning of).