Creamy Avocado Pasta with Broiled Wild Salmon
/I struggled with whether or not I should post today, but, I know that I look forward to reading fellow blogger's posts as a nice departure from all of the madness. Also, this is a really great comfort meal and very quick and easy to make. I do hope you enjoy.
If you like avocado, garlic, and lemon. You will L O V E this meal. You don't even need salmon if you don't like it. Seriously, just wait until you make this. Not kidding. Ok I'll stop and explain.
The creamy avocado pesto is easy, FAST, and can be used 3 ways. It is also loaded with protein, fiber, & antioxidants. It's a power meal.
To make the sauce, you'll need a food processor. Take the below ingredients: one lemon or two, healthy handful of basil, one whole avocado, 1-2 cloves of garlic (I used 1.5 and I love garlic, it's raw so it's strong), sea salt, crushed red pepper, and extra virgin o/o. I don't really measure any of my ingredients for this sauce so just eyeball it. Finally, one last ingredient that is not necessary, BUT, adds more protein, thickens the sauce and makes it usable as a spread.... a handful or two of chickpeas!
Toss all of the ingredients in the food processor and hit go. Add more or less olive oil and lemon juice to thicken or thin out the sauce. (It's going to be a little thick and that's ok... it's great on bread and it will get really creamy on the hot pasta).
You could stop here... use it as an avocado pesto spread and bring it to a party. Here, I toasted up some Iggy's multigrain bread and spread it while I was making the rest of my meal. So. freaking. delicious. The photo on the right is the extra I had leftover after I made my pasta (below). I've been using it this week for chicken, on pasta again, etc. Seal it with plastic wrap tightly to the mixture and it won't turn brown.
Foodies has Wild Salmon now... HOORAY! Always try and buy wild fish, farm raised is bad. They feed the fish corn, fish bits, and who knows what else. They are fattier and you really don't know what you're putting in your body when you eat it. There's about 22g of protein in 3g of Salmon in addition to a slew of other awesomeness like omega-3 fatty acids (amazing for your whole system, especially for your brain), b vitamins, and much more).
Simply drizzle with extra virgin o/o and sea salt and BROIL for 10 minutes. Broiling seals in all of the awesomeness and gives that nice golden crisp top.
At the same time, cook your barilla protein plus pasta (also loaded with protein and omega-3 fatty acids) for 10 minutes.
Once the pasta is done, strain quickly leaving a tbs or so of pasta water.... toss in the avocado pesto to coat the spaghetti. Add some diced tomatoes and parmesan cheese. Take some lemon rind and sprinkle all over dish. Done and done!
This is, by far, one of my favorite meals. I love pesto, avocados, and bean dips. Marrying all three in this sauce/spread makes it the perfect combination. I've made this before without the chickpeas and it's also good. Let me know if you have any questions.
Have a lovely week. xo.
