Wailana's recipe trials take 3

I tried more of Wailana's recipes today. I still had some left over avocados from the other day, so here's what I made:

Wailana's Avo-Pasta

With a creative, elegant presentation, this rich, cheesy pasta dish will easily become one of your regular recipes. Flavored with balsamic vinegar and nutritional yeast and filled with chunks of fresh avocado, it makes a cool, dairy-free alternative to typical macaroni and cheese.

1 1/2 cups dried spiral pasta

Salsa:
1/2 Tbsp. olive oil
3/4 cup onion, minced
2 large cloves garlic, minced
2 cups tomato, peeled and diced
1/4 cup ketchup
1 tsp. ground cumin
2 tsp. raw sugar
Salt and black pepper to taste
Pinch of cayenne pepper to taste

Vegan Cheese:
1 Tbsp. nutritional yeast
1 Tbsp. cornstarch
2 Tbsp. eggless mayonnaise
1/2 cup water
1/16 tsp. turmeric
1/8 tsp. salt
2 tsp. soy sauce
1/8 + 1/16 tsp. balsamic vinegar

3 cups ripe avocado, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
6 large lettuce leaves

1. Cook the pasta according to the package directions. Rinse in cold water and set aside to drain well.

2. Meanwhile, prepare the salsa. Heat the olive oil in a skillet on medium heat and sauté the onion and garlic until lightly browned. Add the remaining salsa ingredients and cook until thickened, then remove from the heat and chill. Note: Use store-bought salsa if desired.

3. Whisk all the Vegan Cheese ingredients together in a small saucepan until well combined. Bring to a boil on high heat, stirring constantly until thickened. Chill until cold. In a large bowl, mix the pasta and Vegan Cheese until well combined. Add the avocado cubes and gently toss together.

4. To serve, either line a large salad bowl with lettuce leaves or place a lettuce leaf in each individual serving bowl. Gently scoop the avo-pasta on top of the lettuce. Make a small hole in the center of the pasta and fill with the salsa.

Serves 6

Nutritional Information Per Serving:
Calories: 299, Fat 14.3g (128 cal), Carbohydrate 36.5g (146 cal), Protein 6.2g (25 cal)
Added information: Saturated Fat 2.3g, Cholesterol 1mg, Sodium 382mg, Dietary Fiber 5.5g

I didn't follow the vegan cheese thing and used parmesan instead. I'm a great fan of parmesan :). It was a pretty yummy dish. I invited some of my girlfriends over to eat it with me, and they all seem to have enjoyed it as much as I enjoyed the beautiful mocha drinks they brought. The joy of friendship!