Avocado Pesto Pasta Salad

This bright green pesto-inspired sauce gets its perfectly creamy texture from ripe avocados. It’s not a traditional pesto by any means, but it’s a great way to make a deceptively luxurious sauce without adding any extra oil or cream. Just be mindful that, because of the avocado, this is not the kind of pesto you want to freeze. In fact, make sure to eat this salad within twenty-four hours to avoid (harmless but not very pretty) browning—which shouldn’t be a problem, I’m sure! One last thing: this delicious pesto is completely vegan, so if you’d like the entire recipe to be vegan just omit the mozzarella.

Ingredients

12 ounces fusilli
2 cups (packed) fresh basil leaves, plus more for serving
1 ripe avocado
⅓ cup pine nuts
2 garlic cloves
2 tablespoons lemon juice
¼ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon black pepper
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for serving
1 pint cherry tomatoes, halved
8 ounces fresh mozzarella pearls or ciliegine, drained

DIRECTIONS

Bring a large pot of well-salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the pasta and cook according to the package directions. Drain the pasta and rinse with cold water until completely cool. Transfer to a large serving bowl. Set aside.
Meanwhile, place the basil in a food processor and pulse until finely chopped. Add the avocado, pine nuts, garlic, lemon juice, salt, and pepper; pulse to combine. With the food processor running, slowly drizzle in the oil, stopping to scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed, until smooth and creamy.
Transfer the avocado pesto to the bowl with the pasta; toss to combine. Fold in the tomatoes and mozzarella. Serve with more basil and a drizzle of oil. Add the crispy feta on top and sprinkle the salad with more zaatar to taste. Serve immediately.

Photography by Doaa Elkady
*Recipe courtesy of the Feel Good Foodie Cookbook by Yumna Jawad