Vegan Roasted Bell Pepper and Veggie Pasta
This creamy vegan pasta is made from simple ingredients and has a blender red pepper pasta sauce. It’s packed with roasted vegetables, fresh basil, and soaked cashews for creaminess. You’ll make this Vegan Roasted Bell Pepper and Veggie Pasta part of your weekly menu routine because it’s that tasty.
This dish has just a few key ingredients and is a great option for busy weeknights. It’s packed with flavor from fresh herbs, red pepper flakes, roasted red peppers, and citrusy lemon.
This pasta is blowing up social media and for good reason! With little effort, a delicious vegan dinner can be on the kitchen table within 25 minutes or less.
The flavor of the sauce is delicious and the roasted vegetables add to the heartiness of this pasta dish. This is easily one of our favorite vegan weeknight meals.
Why You Will Love This Vegan Roasted Red Pepper Pasta
The creamy sauce is out of this world good. Pasta is all about the sauce, am I right? This easy and delicious sauce is made by throwing the ingredients into a high-speed blender. What a flavorful and creamy sauce yet so simple to make.
It’s customizable. Are you gluten-free? You can use any pasta of your choice for this recipe. Interested in other roasted vegetable varieties like sweet potato or red bell pepper? Go for it!
It’s easy to make. You only need a couple of minutes to put together the homemade pasta sauce, roasted vegetables, and cooked pasta.
The best part is the wholesome ingredients. This pasta is healthy and a great dinner option for your whole family.
It’s a family favorite pasta dish. My husband loves this red pepper pasta recipe and get’s excited when I make it. It’s honestly one of the most creamy pasta dishes I have had.
It reheats well. It’s easy to save the leftover pasta. By throwing it in an airtight container, you’ll have leftovers ready for your next meal.
What Are the Ingredients?
Pasta-Grab a box of your pasta of choice because this part is about you. Shells, rigatoni, lentil-based, or gluten-free pasta. It’s up to you.
Red onion-Nothing tastes better than roasted peppers and onion, am I right? I love this combination.
Zucchini-You can technically use any type of squash. I just prefer zucchini squash.
Broccoli-Have you heard the amazing health benefits of cruciferous vegetables? I try to add them to at least one meal a day!
Basil-One of my favorite aspects of this dish is the fresh basil on top of the cooked pasta. Talk about fresh!
Avocado oil-You can also use extra virgin olive oil. I prefer to cook with AVO oil, however.
For the Sauce you Will Need These Ingredients
Jar of roasted bell peppers-This is what makes the recipe so easy to make. No need to waste your time roasting bell peppers from scratch. Easy peasy!
Cashews-You will soak them which will add to the creaminess of the sauce.
Nutritional yeast flakes-Only the best vegan cheese alternative. Well, it definitely does not replace cheese, LOL. It provides a similar flavor.
Lemon juice-I love adding a citrus component to sauces. Yum! Not to mention, it is so healthy for you!
Vegetable stock-This has so much flavor compared to using water. But if you have to, feel free to use water instead.
Garlic cloves-That’s because everything tastes better with garlic. I recommend fresh garlic instead of garlic powder.
Red pepper flakes-These small but mighty spices are just what you need to add a hint of spice to the sauce.
How to Make Vegan Roasted Bell Pepper and Veggie Pasta
*Make sure to soak your cashews in water for at least 4 hours. See notes below for a quicker alternative.
Step one: Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone mat.
Step two: Place the chopped vegetables onto the lined baking sheet. Drizzle with avocado oil, and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Using your hands, toss until all of the vegetables are evenly coated. Spread the vegetables into a single, even layer. Cook for 15-20 minutes or until the edges are browned.
Step three: Cook the pasta according to the package directions. Drain the water and set the pasta aside, keeping the pasta warm in the pot.
Step four: Make the sauce. Place all of the ingredients into a high speed blender and blend until smooth and creamy. *Make sure your cashews have been soaked.
Step five: Add the roasted vegetables and blended sauce to the pot of pasta. Mix to incorporate the sauce. Sprinkle with fresh basil. Serve immediately.
How to Store Leftovers
Place leftovers in an air tight container and in the fridge for up to 2 days. To reheat, place a napkin over a glass bowl of pasta and heat for 1-2 minutes in the microwave or until heated all of the way through.
Tips + Modifications
Feel free to roast whichever vegetables you have on hand. Or add in others. The more vegetables the better, right?
To soak your cashews:
-Place raw cashews in a glass bowl. Fill the bowl with filtered water until the cashews are completely covered. Place the bowl into the fridge for at least 4 hours or overnight.
-To speed this up, heat the water until boiling. Remove from the heat. Soak the cashews in the hot water for 20-30 minutes. Drain and then they are all set.
Vegan Roasted Bell Pepper and Veggie Pasta
Equipment
- 1 high speed blender to blend sauce
- 1 sheet pan, lined to roast veggies
- 1 pot to cook pasta
Ingredients
- 1 (8oz) bag of your favorite pasta shells or rigatoni, suggested
- 1 large red onion, peeled and thinly sliced
- 1 large zucchini, cut into small slices and then quartered
- 1½ cups broccoli florets, stems removed and chopped into bite-sized pieces
- 2 tablespoons avocado oil or olive oil
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon ground pepper
- 2 tablespoons fresh minced basil
For the roasted bell pepper blender sauce
- 1 jar (12oz) of roasted bell peppers, drained
- 1 cup raw, unsalted cashews, soaked in water for at least 4 hours. *See notes below if you need to speed up this process
- juice from ½ a lemon
- ¼ cup vegetable stock water can work but broth is recommended
- 2 tablespoons nutritional yeast flakes
- 3 garlic cloves, roughly chopped
- 1 pinch of red pepper flakes
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone mat.
- Place the chopped vegetables onto the lined baking sheet. Drizzle with avocado oil, and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Using your hands, toss until all of the vegetables are evenly coated. Spread the vegetables into a single, even layer. Cook for 15-20 minutes or until the edges are browned.
- Cook the pasta according to the package directions. Drain the water and set the pasta aside, keeping the pasta warm in the pot.
- Make the sauce. Place all of the ingredients into a high speed blender and blend until smooth and creamy. *Make sure your cashews have been soaked.
- Add the roasted vegetables and blended sauce to the pot of pasta. Mix to incorporate. Sprinkle with fresh basil. Serve immediately.
Notes
Enjoy!
XOXO
Michelle