Creamy Vegan Lemon Pepper Pasta Recipe (Gluten-Free!)
This creamy vegan pasta is a dairy-free, gluten-free take on a quick, easy, and delicious dish! With a homemade, creamy, zesty lemon pepper sauce made from fresh lemon juice, cashew butter, roasted garlic, and cauliflower. It's bursting with bright, peppery flavor in every bite and takes just under 30 minutes to make!
Servings: 2 -3 servings
Ingredients
- 2 servings pasta of choice I used these gluten-free bowties
- 1/2 large head of cauliflower roughly 2 cups of florets, packed
- 3-4 cloves garlic
- 3/4 cup unsweetened soymilk can use other unsweetened, unflavoured non-dairy milk
- 2 tbsp unsweetened creamy cashew butter or tahini*
- 2 tbsp nutritional yeast
- juice of 1 lemon
- salt and pepper to taste
- optional vegan parmesan
- optional lemon zest to garnish
Instructions
- Cook pasta according to package directions, cooking until al dente. Drain pasta and set aside, saving 1/4 cup of pasta water.
- Next, prepare your ingredients to create your lemon sauce. Steam cauliflower florets until tender, roughly 5-8 minutes. While cauliflower is steaming, smash and sauté garlic cloves with a splash of olive oil or veggie broth until fragrant. Alternatively, you can use this oil-free roasted garlic.
- Add cauliflower, sautéed garlic, and all remaining sauce ingredients to a high-speed blender or food processor and blend until completely smooth. If necessary, you can add additional soy milk or pasta water to achieve desired sauce texture. Season the smooth vegan pasta sauce with salt and pepper to taste, using lots of pepper (remember, this is lemon pepper pasta 😉).
- Pour the blended lemon sauce into a saucepan over medium heat, stirring and simmering for a few minutes. Add cooked pasta to the saucepan and gently stir to coat, adding pasta water by the tablespoon as necessary, and enjoy!
Notes
Secrets to Success
- When making this sauce, make sure you pay special attention to the kind of cashew butter and soy milk you're using. Avoid using sweetened nut butter or non-dairy milk, and ensure no flavours (like vanilla) are added. It will definitely impact the recipe, speaking from experience!
- To spice up this creamy vegan pasta, feel free to garnish it with red pepper flakes. Keep in mind it does have some spice from the black pepper, but red pepper flakes add some extra heat if desired.
- Additionally, you can garnish with chopped fresh basil and vegan parmesan cheese shreds as well.
- Some people like to add chicken breasts to their lemmon pepper pasta. If you want to add protein, you can use a vegan chicken substitute or sauté tofu and add to the fresh pasta.
Serving Tips
- Serve this creamy vegan pasta warm and garnish with fresh herbs like fresh basil or fresh parsley, red pepper flakes, and/or vegan parmesan.
- You can serve it on its own or with a simple arugula salad or side salad of choice.
Storage Tips
- Store leftover pasta in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days. To reheat, I recommend warming it up in a large skillet over medium-low heat, using a little water or olive oil to break up the pasta, as it will have melded together in the refrigerator.