I am continuing my quest to use all the gorgeous avocados my parents brought to us from Fallbrook. (Thank you Carle family! I know they were from your trees!) This recipe is modified from a Clean Eating Avocado Pesto recipe. It is still a ‘clean’ recipe though. The avocado replaces the cheese and oil that you would find in normal pesto recipes but you won’t miss them a bit.

I  meant to take a picture of everything in the blender because it was so pretty but had to add one last ingredient and then got a little trigger happy and forgot to photograph it before blending! At least I managed to get a picture of the end result before devouring my lunch of roasted veggies (sunburst squash, baby zucchini, and asparagus) with avocado pesto.  I DID take a picture of the Sunburst Squash before roasting it though. They are just so cute and pretty and dare I say, happy? Don’t you think so?

Sorry, I digress…pretty produce does that to me.

This pesto could have countless uses:

• toss with roasted veggies and serve as a side dish
• grill shrimp or chicken and top with the pesto
• use as a spread for sandwiches
• toss with lettuce, tomatoes, and a little bacon for a BLTA salad
• serve as a dip with fresh veggies or multigrain chips
• toss with pasta, veggies, and protein of choice for a one bowl meal
• spread on crostini topped with chopped fresh tomatoes for a pretty and healthy appetizer (a little crumbled bacon could be fun on that too!)
• chop cooked shrimp and dice some celery, mince some chives, mix with avocado pesto, and you have a delicious shrimp salad
• use it to replace Hollandaise sauce for a healthier eggs benedict
• serve it on burgers of any variety
• Please let me know if you think of other fun ways to use it!

Avocado Pesto

Ingredients

• 2 medium avocados
• 1 1/2 cups packed fresh basil leaves
• 1 1/2 Tbsp fresh lemon juice
• 1 small garlic clove, peeled and quartered
• 1/4 cup raw, unsalted almonds
• kosher salt to taste
• freshly ground pepper to taste
• water for thinning

Place all but the water in a blender or food processor and blend until smooth. Add  water 1 Tbsp at a time as necessary to thin until you reach your desired consistency. Taste and adjust salt and pepper to your liking.