If you’re tired of traditional pesto, make this southwestern cilantro, jalapeno, and avocado pesto pasta with corn and beans, instead! Packed with nutrients and bursting with flavour, it’s sure to become a favourite in your dinner rotation.

A few weeks ago, we made these Black Bean and Roasted Sweet Potato Quesadillas for dinner, and paired them with my Cilantro Jalapeno Pesto. It had been a very long time since we’d had the pesto, and I was struck with inspiration to turn it into a southwestern-style pasta dish!

In this dish, cilantro jalapeno pesto is tossed with pasta noodles and a jumble of sautéed vegetables and black beans. The stars of the (vegetable) show here are onion, garlic, zucchini, tomatoes, and corn, which are lightly seasoned with cumin and chili flakes. You can even top individual servings with quick pickled shishito or jalapeno peppers- I’m including instructions for how to do so in the recipe!

Overall, this is one incredibly flavourful and healthy plant-powered pasta dish that I think you will absolutely love! It’s spicy, zesty, tangy, rich, creamy, and fresh all at once! Plus, thanks to the walnuts in the pesto and the black beans, it’s packed with quality protein. Oh yes, and because cilantro is such a polarizing herb, I should mention that if you despise it, then by all means use an equivalent amount of basil or parsley instead! 🙂

Ingredients You’ll Need

For the pesto: Walnuts, pepitas, or sunflower seeds, cilantro, kale, lime juice, nutritional yeast, extra virgin olive oil, garlic, avocado, jalapeno, sea salt, pepper, and water.
For the vegetables and beans: Olive oil, onion, garlic, sea salt, pepper, cumin, chili flakes, zucchini, corn, tomatoes, and black beans.
Plus pasta noodles of your choice. I used fettuccine, but spaghetti, linguine, rotini, fusilli, and penne would all work!

Step By Step Instructions

Make the pesto: Add the walnuts, cilantro, kale, lime juice, nutritional yeast, olive oil, garlic, avocado, jalapeño, salt, pepper, and water to a food processor. Blend until smooth and transfer to an airtight container.
Prepare the sautéed vegetables and beans: Warm the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the onion, garlic, and a small pinch of salt. Sauté, stirring occasionally, until lightly browned, about 8 minutes. Add the remaining salt, pepper, cumin, and chili flakes. Next, add the zucchini and corn. Cook just until the zucchini is tender but not soggy, about 5 minutes. Finally, add the tomatoes and black beans.
Cook pasta according to directions on the package, drain, and return to the pot.
Add the pesto to the cooked pasta and toss to coat. Spoon the sautéed vegetables and beans over top and mix in.
Serve with quick pickled shishito or jalapeño peppers or hot sauce, if desired.

Allergy Substitutions

For nut allergies, be sure to use sunflower seeds or pepitas instead of walnuts.
For gluten allergies, use gluten-free noodles, such as Go Go Quinoa brand. You can also use spiralized zucchini and/or carrots for a lighter gluten-free option.

More Pesto Recipes

I hope that you love this cilantro jalapeno avocado pesto pasta! If you make it, let me know how you enjoyed it by leaving a comment and rating below. And if you share a photo to Instagram, tag it @upbeet.kitchen and #upbeetkitchen!

Have a great weekend, and enjoy!

Cilantro Jalapeno Avocado Pesto Pasta with Corn and Beans

Author: Allison
Total Time: 35 minutes
Yield: 4 large or 6 medium servings 1x
Diet: Vegan

Print Recipe

Description

Ingredients

Scale

Cilantro Jalapeno Avocado Pesto

½ cup walnuts, pepitas (raw shelled pumpkin seeds) or raw sunflower seeds
2 cups cilantro (about two small bunches- some stems are okay)
1 cup chopped green kale
½ cup freshly squeezed lime juice (yes, that is correct; it might seem like a lot, but it’s worth it)
¼ cup nutritional yeast
¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
2–3 medium cloves of garlic, minced
1 medium ripe avocado, pitted and flesh scooped out
1 jalapeno, stem removed and finely chopped (include the seeds for a spicier pesto)
1 tsp fine sea salt
Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
¼ cup water

Vegetables and Beans

1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 red onion, finely diced
2 garlic cloves, minced
¼ tsp fine sea salt
Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
1 tsp ground cumin
¼ tsp chili flakes
2 medium zucchini, sliced into half moons
1 cup corn kernels (fresh or frozen)
1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
1 ½ cups cooked black beans (or 1 14-oz can, drained and rinsed)

Quick Pickled Shishitos or Jalapeños (Optional)

1 ½ cups stemmed and sliced shishito or jalapeno peppers
½ cup water
½ cup apple cider vinegar
1 tsp maple syrup or cane sugar
¾ tsp fine sea salt

Everything Else

1 lb (454 g) uncooked pasta

Instructions

If making the quick pickled peppers: Place the sliced peppers in a heatproof glass jar. In a small saucepan, combine the water, apple cider vinegar, syrup or sugar, and salt. Bring to a low bowl and remove from heat. Let it cool slightly before pouring over the peppers. Once there is no longer any steam rising from the jar, secure the lid and refrigerate until ready to use.
Make the pesto: Add the walnuts, cilantro, kale, lime juice, nutritional yeast, olive oil, garlic, avocado, jalapeño, salt, pepper, and water to a food processor. Blend until smooth and transfer to an airtight container.
Prepare the sautéed vegetables and beans: Warm the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the onion, garlic, and a small pinch of salt. Sauté, stirring occasionally, until lightly browned, about 8 minutes. Add the remaining salt, pepper, cumin, and chili flakes. Next, add the zucchini and corn. Cook just until the zucchini is tender but not soggy, about 5 minutes. Finally, add the tomatoes and black beans.
Cook pasta according to directions on the package, drain, and return to the pot.
Add the pesto to the cooked pasta and toss to coat. Spoon the sautéed vegetables and beans over top and mix in.
Serve with quick pickled shishito or jalapeño peppers or hot sauce, if desired.

Notes

I use ½ cup of lime juice in this pesto, which is the amount of juice in 2-3 limes. While untraditional, I love the tanginess that this amount provides. If you like a less tangy flavour, feel free to use less lime juice and compensate with more water!

Shishito peppers are a fairly mild Asian pepper variety that can often be found at farmer’s markets. If you are unable to find them, use jalapeños.

Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 15 minutes
Category: Supper, Pasta
Cuisine: Mexican-Italian Fusion

Keywords: cilantro jalapeño avocado pesto pasta, southwestern corn and bean pasta