Pasta con Palta (Creamy Avocado Pesto Pasta)

Careful with walnuts (can be too nutty) & add lots of salt to balance out

Must add acid-lemon, lime, whatever you have on hand. Definitely add the full cup of pasta water. It was plenty of sauce to coat 20 oz. Of pasta. It is so rich; I think it would be better as a side dish.

I have to say, as written this is very bland. Barely edible. After I tasted, first added red pepper flakes. Then added parmesan. Then more salt. Then tomatoes on the vine (all I had). The tomatoes improved it considerably, but it really needs lemon. I would add lemon next time, but don't think I will make again. Better to make some guac, and just have pasta with olive oil and cheese.

Not enough flavor, though Mom liked it a lot. I sprinkled red pepper flakes before serving, that helped. Used lots of squeezed lemon, which I saw in notes of others. Worth trying again because I think there's room to be creative and make it better.

Yum. Make half sauce and half pasta and still be enough for 4 people. Added half a lemon worth of lemon zest. Used bow tie pasta. Served with grilled boneless skinless thighs - marinated half day in lemon, garlic, olive oil and Aleppo marinade - lemon heavy small amount total

I loved this, was so comforting. I didn’t have walnuts or a blender so I ground the garlic and some flaked almonds in a pestle and mortar before adding in the avocado. Stirred through some rocket I had handy towards the end as well. Delicious and peppery.

Quick, easy and very good. We liked the creamy texture. My only change was to add a couple of teaspoons of lemon juice. For subsequent batches I'll experiment with chunkier texture, cheeses, tomatoes, etc.

I wish I had read the comments before making this. I definitely would have fried up the garlic. Straight garlic is hard for me to handle. This was quite bland. I would have added cherry tomatoes and parmesan cheese.

Next time I’ll try to process with lemon to balance the fat and herbs first some flavor and moisture

I’m Chilean and never grew up eating palta with pasta..we do eat it with everything else though. That being said, I love this combo! Just not sure it’s accurate to say it’s Chilean.

I hate to leave such a harsh review, but this recipe was truely abhorrent. Just don't make it.

-I would use a food processor over a blender if possible. I tried using a blender (because I was too lazy to pull out the Cuisinart) and it really didn't work. -A similar recipe on NYT Cooking uses a little lemon juice; I think that would brighten up the flavor a little and perhaps curtail some of the darkening of color (esp. for leftovers) -As noted in another comment, the avocado will darken in an unappealing way, over time. Don't make many leftovers!

As written, the recipe makes a bland, flat dish, and requiring a blender to make it is ridiculous. I added lemon juice and zest to help it out. Not enough. I’ll add tomatoes and some pepper heat if I ever make it again. Maybe greens or corn or some protein. And I’ll crush the garlic and nuts then add them to a smashed avocado. I halved the recipe, and it’s enough for 3.

Grate some garlic, mash up an avocado or two, squeeze in some lime juice, add salt & pepper then stir in hot pasta. One of my go to quick dinners. Sprinkling on some nuts sounds like a fine addition.

Hmm - I've been married into a Chilean family for 25 years. They are predictable fanatics when it comes to "palta," but no one has ever heard of putting it on pasta. One thing I can say is that if this were made in Chile it would definitely have lemon mixed into the palta. The addition of tomatoes would be very authentic as well. And then they'd skip the pasta and smear the whole thing on bread with a nice bottle of red, which is very Chilean.