L-O-V-I-N this mouthwatering recipe for avocado salad. Seriously, I can't stop eating. Great as a side dish or a light lunch, this pasta recipe is loaded with savory bacon crumbles, red-ripe tomato, creamy avocado and more. The homemade dressing is perfectly tangy and clings to every bite of rotini.
Yes, Virginia, you can put pasta in your avocado salad. HA!
Of course, I should be cutting carbs and eating this veggie only style. There's nothing wrong with a bowl of garden tomatoes, yummy avocado, and crisp cucumber tossed in a tangy dressing. Eat it up!
But sometimes I need noodles. Ok, confession, all the time I need noodles. We've taken our fave tomato - avocado - cucumber combo and added rotini pasta and our BFF bacon.
The result = delectable.
Ingredients Needed:
- Avocados
- Tomatoes
- Bacon
- Rotini pasta
- Cucumber
- Red onion
- Oil
- Vinegar
- Honey
- Mayo - Just a smidge to thicken the dressing.
- Dry Italian herbs
- Seasonings - Onion powder, garlic powder, salt + black pepper
This is a great recipe to throw together and let chill in the fridge.
TIP: Fresh produce is always best. Look for juicy, ripe red tomatoes, crisp cucumber, and ripe avocado.
I like to whisk together the ingredients first and let them meld together while I'm chopping up the vegetables. Then I toss the veggies in the dressing as I go along and let them start soaking up all of that flavor.
Part of the avocado kind of "melts" into the vinegar and oil mixture and makes the dressing thicker. YUMMY! This helps it cling to the pasta.
How to Make Bacon Tomato Avocado Salad:
- First, cook the pasta in water to package directions for al dente. Drain, rinse with cold water and set aside.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the honey, mayo, and olive oil. Add the Italian herbs, garlic powder, onion powder, salt, and black pepper. Drizzle in the vinegar and water and whisk until smooth and combined. Set aside.
- Next, chop the avocado, tomato, and cucumber into bite-sized pieces. Slice the onion thinly. Add the vegetables to the prepared dressing and toss to coat.
- Then fold in the pasta until well-coated.
- Stir in the bacon and serve.
TIP: If you are not serving the avocado salsa immediately, save the bacon and add it right before serving. That helps keep the bacon nice and crisp.
This is what I'm talking about! Crave-worthy pasta twirled in loads of tasty avocado, tomato, and bacon. And the dressing. Light. Tangy. Perfect.
More Avocado Recipes You Might Like:
Tomato + Avocado Tuna Melt
Southern Style Avocado Deviled Eggs
Fresh Guacamole with Cilantro + Lime
Tips + Ideas:
- Drain and rinse the pasta in COLD water while it is al dente. This stops the cooking process, cools the pasta, and keeps it from getting soggy.
- Not a fan of olive oil? You can make this with corn oil or vegetable oil.
- We used white vinegar, but you can change up the flavor with apple cider vinegar if that's what you have on hand.
- Pick your favorite bite-sized pasta. We used rotini, but you could also use macaroni, penne, shells, etc.
- Making ahead of time? Chill in the fridge and add the bacon last minute.
- Feeling cheesy? Sprinkle crumbled feta or goat cheese in the mix.
Cannot wait for you to try this yummy Bacon Tomato Avocado Salad recipe! Be sure to leave us a comment at the bottom of this post and let us know what you think.
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Bacon Tomato Avocado Salad
Ingredients
- 2 cups rotini pasta dry, uncooked
- 2 tablespoons honey
- 1 tablespoon mayonnaise
- ¼ cup olive oil
- 1 teaspoon dry Italian herbs
- ½ teaspoon onion powder
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon salt more to taste
- ½ teaspoon black pepper more to taste
- ¼ cup white vinegar
- ¼ cup water
- 2 avocados chopped
- 2 tomatoes chopped
- 1 small cucumber chopped
- ½ cup red onion thinly sliced
- 8 strips bacon cooked, crumbled
Instructions
- First, cook the pasta in water to package directions for al dente. Drain, rinse with cold water and set aside.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the honey, mayo, and olive oil. Add the Italian herbs, garlic powder, onion powder, salt, and black pepper. Drizzle in the vinegar and water and whisk until smooth and combined. Set aside.
- Next, chop the avocado, tomato, and cucumber into bite-sized pieces. Slice the onion thinly. Add the vegetables to the prepared dressing and toss to coat.
- Then fold in the pasta until well-coated.
- Stir in the bacon and serve.
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