Heather BlackmonI know that the first day of Spring was weeks ago, but for me it finally felt like Spring on Easter! Maybe that’s because I’ve been holding tight to Winter, not ready to give up my snowboarding adventures for the year. Or maybe because we really did get a TON of snow a little over a week ago.
Now that I’m back from our snowboarding vacation, I’m ready to hit the homestretch of half ironman training hard – bring on Spring!
What a better way to start my Spring excitement than with the kickoff of the second round of Meatless Mondays from A-Z! I’m thrilled that you guys are as excited about me about the new changes – including a way for those who don’t create recipes to join in the fun! In case you missed the announcement last week, we’re sticking with each ingredient for two weeks.
This is CREATE week, where everyone is welcome to create an original recipe based on the key ingredient: Avocado!
It took me a few tries to get this week’s recipe, but I’m so glad I kept trying until this simple, spring pasta came out! Plus, I’ll never complain about eating lots of avocados.
Did you know?
Avocados contain almost 20 nutrients, including: potassium, vitamin K, folate, B vitamins, & vitamin C. They have more potassium than a banana! Sometimes they get a bad rap for being high in fat, but nearly 50% of the fat in an avocado comes from monounsaturated fat – which can help lower bad cholesterol levels.
Now that we’ve had a little education, are you ready for the recipe? Kirk and I enjoyed this recipe as our entrée, but you could certainly use this pasta as an appetizer, side, or even brunch choice!
Avocado Awakening Pasta
by
Keywords: appetizer entree brunch side soy-free sugar-free vegan vegetarian pasta avocado American spring summer
Ingredients (serves 4)
- 8 ounces pasta (I used elbow macaroni)
- 1/2 cup cashews
- 1/4 cup almond milk
- 1 avocado
- 1 teaspoon lemon juice
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 10 grape tomatoes, halved
- 3-6 radishes, sliced
- 1 tablespoon parsley
- 1/2 cup peas
Instructions
Boil pasta according to package directions. When finished, rinse with cool water and set aside.
While pasta is cooking, prepare sauce. In a food processor, blend cashews until they are finely ground. Slowly pour in almond milk to begin creating sauce. Add avocado, lemon juice, and salt.
Stir sauce into cooked pasta until fully coated. Add remaining ingredients (tomatoes through peas) and stir until fully incorporated. Serve pasta at room temperature to chilled.
Don’t forget: next up is COOK week, where you cook a recipe with avocados (hopefully one you find here today!) and share your experience. I can’t wait to see what you guys made, so that I can pick out one of them to make & share myself!
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Questions for you:
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Does it feel like Spring to you yet?
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Did the Easter bunny bring you anything cool yesterday?
