Cauliflower Pasta - The Plant Based School (2024)

Our cauliflower pasta is everything you want for a delicious and easy everyday dinner.

Roasted cauliflower florets meet delicious garlic and olive oil sauce, plenty of fresh parsley, lemon zest, and toasted pinenuts.

Table of Contents

• Ingredients
• Instructions
• Variations
• Serving Suggestions
• Make ahead
• Storage
• More Pasta Recipes
• Cauliflower Pasta Recipe

Pasta

We like to use spaghetti or linguine for our roasted cauliflower pasta recipe, but you can also use any short pasta such as rigatoni, rotini, campanelle, fusilli, penne, and more.

Our tip is to go for bronze cut pasta if you can find it. It has a rugged surface that makes the sauce stick better. It also keeps “al dente” for longer than regular pasta.

To make this recipe gluten-free, use gluten-free pasta.

Cauliflower

Pick a fresh, large cauliflower head. We use the whole cauliflower, cut into florets, then roasted in the oven with olive oil and salt.

If the cauliflower has brown spots, remove them with a paring knife.

Garlic

Use two to four garlic cloves, based on your garlic tolerance. This should be a garlicky pasta dish overall. You can mince the garlic or slice it thinly.

Olive oil

If you have it, use heart-healthy extra virgin olive oil. It has a richer, fruitier flavor, and it’s healthier than regular olive oil and most other oils because it has a higher amount of antioxidants.

Red pepper flakes

Red pepper flakes add a nice mild spiciness to this cauliflower pasta recipe; however, you can substitute cayenne pepper, chili powder, or dried chili for red pepper flakes.

Parsley

For pasta recipes, we always recommend flat-leaf parsley because it’s more aromatic and less coarse than curly parsley.

You can substitute fresh basil with parsley, but in this case, do not cook it with the oil; instead, add it at the end with the cheese.

Cheese

Since this pasta dish is very simple, we think it requires a good handful of grated parmesan or dairy-free cheese to shine.

Add a few handfuls of cheese while the pasta is still in the pot so that it melts and makes the whole dish creamier and tastier.

If you are vegan and don’t have access to dairy-free cheese, then we have a couple of homemade vegan parmesan recipes for you. One is with nuts, the other with crunchy breadcrumbs.

Nuts

We sprinkle toasted nuts on this pasta dish to add crunch and a nutty flavor that matches the cauliflower perfectly. Our favorite nut is pine nuts; however, you can also use almonds, walnuts, and cashews; best if toasted on a pan for a few minutes.

Lemon

Lemon juice and lemon zest are optional, but they add freshness to the recipe.

Salt and Black Pepper

We use salt to season the pasta water, for the sauce, and for roasting the cauliflower. Optionally, you can also add a few twists of black pepper.

Step 1: Roast the cauliflower

For Oven-roasted cauliflower

Preheat the oven to 400°F or 200°C. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

Rinse the cauliflower, cut it into florets, and add the florets to the baking sheet.

Season with olive oil and salt, and arrange on a single layer. Bake for 20 minutes, turn with a spatula, and bake for 10 more minutes until the florets are slightly charred and tender but not overcooked.

For air-fried cauliflower

Preheat the air fryerfor 3 minutes at400°For 200°C. Rinse the cauliflower head, cut off small florets and add them to a large mixing bowl. Toss with olive oil and salt, and add to the air fryer basket. Florets CAN overlap.

Air fry for about 15 minutes, shaking the air fryer basket every 4 minutes.

Step 2: Make the sauce

First, prep your vegetables: mince the garlic and chop the parsley. Then, to a large skillet, add olive oil, minced garlic, and chili flakes. Fry the garlic on medium-low heat for one minute, ensuring it doesn’t burn.

Add the finely chopped parsley and a pinch of salt, and fry for one more minute. If the pan gets too hot, turn off the heat.

Add in the roasted cauliflower florets, and toss on medium heat for 30 seconds.

On a separate small non-stick pan, toast the pine nuts for about a minute until they start to brown.

Step 3: Cook and toss the pasta

Boil the pasta in a large pot of salted water as instructed on the package, minus one minute. Reserve one cup of pasta water, drain the pasta and add it to the pan with the sauce.

Toss on medium heat for a short minute, add grated parmesan cheese or a dairy-free alternative, some reserved pasta water, and lemon juice, and stir a few more seconds until the cheese melts.

Note: it’s ok if some cauliflower florets break down when you toss the pasta.

When ready to serve, garnish with toasted pine nuts, grated lemon zest to taste, extra chopped parsley, and freshly ground black pepper.

Red pepper pasta with roasted cauliflower

A rich, tangy, and super tasty red pepper sauce combined with al dente rigatoni and roasted cauliflower florets. This one is our favorite cauliflower pasta recipe, and if you have a chance, we recommend you try it.

Check out our recipe for red pepper pasta with roasted cauliflower.

Make it with broccoli

You can make almost the same recipe by substituting broccoli for cauliflower. In this case, however, we recommend boiling the broccoli instead of roasting it.

To do so, boil the broccoli and the pasta together (at the same time) in the same water. When cooked, toss them in the pan with the sauce, et voilà.

You can make a delicious, creamy, and tasty broccoli pasta in the time it takes for the pasta to boil.

Serve this cauliflower pasta recipe as a main meal. We recommend serving it with a simple side salad on the side or with a side of veggies. Our favorite side dishes for this recipe are:

• Simple side salad
• Grilled zucchini or grilled eggplant
• Roasted eggplants
• Air-fried green beans
• Grilled, steamed, or air-fried asparagus
• Pan fried artichokes or steamed artichokes
• Fennel and orange salad

Make ahead

You can roast the cauliflower up to 2 days ahead of time and store it in an airtight container in the refrigerator.

Storage

Store cauliflower pasta leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 36 hours. Reheat in the microwave for a couple of minutes or on a non-stick pan on medium-high heat with a drizzle of olive oil.

This recipe is not suitable for freezing.

• Garlic and oil pasta, aka spaghetti aglio olio
• Penne arrabbiata or rigatoni arrabbiata
• Spaghetti pomodoro aka tomato basil pasta
• Eggplant pasta aka pasta alla norma
• Tofu pasta with a tasty tofu sauce
• Homemade trofie pasta with pesto
• Vegan mushroom pasta
• Creamy one-pot zucchini pasta