Creamy Cauliflower Pasta

who knew cauliflower can be responsible for creating one of the absolute best pasta dishes you can ever imagine?!

. . .

this dish is great for when having people over, but also great as dinner for one {with loads of leftovers}.

no details, please, straight to the recipe ➪

You may think it strange to combine cauliflower with pasta, but trust me, you will be thanking your lucky stars for leading you to this recipe!

Cauliflower is like this chameleon vegetable that you can create all sorts of dishes with - from cauliflower rice to buffalo cauliflower, this veggie never disappoints! It is also incredibly nutritious, contains a ton of minerals, vitamins and unique antioxidants that may reduce inflammation and protect against several diseases, including cancer and heart disease (source).

The recipe itself is pretty straight-forward, but you will need a powerful blender (I used a NutriBullet) to prepare the ‘creamy’ sauce. Original recipe is by Alison Roman - Creamy Cauliflower Pasta With Pecorino Bread Crumbs, which I decided to re-work into a plant-based option and it is still great!

Adding the breadcrumbs on top is something I would have never thought to do, but it works amazing with this dish, so I strongly recommend that you do not skip that step!

needed ingredients:

cauliflower
shallots
white wine (or vegetable broth)
whole-wheat pasta
cashews
nutritional yeast
non-dairy milk
mustard
tamari sauce
capers
lemon
breadcrumbs

preparation details

Some people eat their pasta with bread, others don’t … whichever kind you are, do not skip on the breadcrumbs, they are the finishing touch that brings it all together! Ever since I made this dish, I have been making these breadcrumbs and adding them to all my soups, I just cannot get enough of them.

It is good practice to turn any days old bread into breadcrumbs and keep in the freezer for whenever you need them - see Homemade Breadcrumbs for more details. However, if you do not have homemade breadcrumbs, you can use store-brought panko as well. Start by heating up 1 Tbsp of olive oil in a large pot (you’ll be using the same pot to cook the cauliflower) and add the breadcrumbs along with the salt, black pepper, red pepper flakes and herbs de Provence. Let them cook for 3-5 min., stirring often to avoid burning. Once the breadcrumbs brown, transfer to a dish and let cool.

Slice the cauliflower into 1/4” - 1/2” thick slices, any thicker and they’ll be too noticeable in the pasta. If some pieces are way too large, just break them up with your hands. When cooked the cauliflower will shrink and almost disappear once the pasta is added, but you will still be able to see some of the larger slices.

Add the cauliflower to the same pot where you prepared the breadcrumbs along with the shallots and 1 Tbsp of olive oil. The idea here is to create a nice browning, which will take about 15-20 min. and then use white wine (or vegetable broth in case you do not want to use wine) to deglaze the pot, incorporating all that flavor back into the cauliflower.

At the same time, place a large pot with water over high heat and let it come to a boil. Cook the pasta according to the instructions on the packaging. I find that cooking the whole wheat pasta a couple of extra minutes is actually more to my liking and it is still slightly al dente.

While the pasta and cauliflower are cooking is time to prepare the creamy sauce - simply place all of the ingredients into a powerful blender and blend for 1-2 min. until the sauce is completely smooth. Taste and adjust to your taste, if needed.

Once the cauliflower is nicely browned, add the cooked pasta to the pot along with the capers, lemon zest, creamy sauce and stir well. If too thick, add a little of the pasta water and give it a good mix.

Serve the pasta topped with the breadcrumbs, some parsley (or chives, if you can get some), black cumin seeds, a little more lemon zest and a sprinkle of red pepper flakes.

I find that the pasta keeps well in the fridge and makes for great leftovers (I even like it when it is cold).

recipe

Creamy Cauliflower Pasta

Who knew cauliflower can be responsible for creating one of the absolute best pasta dishes you can ever imagine?! This dish is great for when having people over, but also great as dinner for one {with loads of leftovers}.

(vegetarian & vegan friendly)

Author: The Kitchen Plot

Prep Time: 5 min.

Cook Time: 25 min.

Overall Time: 30 min.

Serves: 4 - 6

Perfect for: lunch, dinner

Keeps for: fridge - 3 days

Method:

Heat 1 Tbsp of the olive oil in a large pot. Add the breadcrumbs, red pepper flakes, salt, black pepper, herbs de Provence and mix well. Cook for 3-5 min., stirring often to avoid burning. Once the breadcrumbs have browned, transfer to a plate and let cool.
Place a pot filled with water over high heat and bring to a boil. Once the water starts boiling, reduce the heat, add a tablespoon of sea salt, add the pasta and cook according to the instructions on the package.
In the same pot as you prepared the breadcrumbs, heat the remaining tablespoon olive oil, add the cauliflower and shallots and sauté for 15-20 min., stirring from time to time. Add the white wine when the cauliflower starts browning and starts to stick to the bottom of the pot (~ 10-15min.). After you add the wine be sure to scrape the bottom of the pot to re-introduce all that flavor back into the cauliflower.
While the pasta and cauliflower are cooking, prepare the creamy sauce by placing all of the ingredients into a powerful blender and blend for 1-2 min.
Drain the pasta once it is cooked, reserving 1 cup of the pasta water.
Add the pasta to the cauliflower, along with the capers, lemon zest, creamy sauce and mix well. If the sauce seems too thick, add a little bit of the pasta water and mix again.
Serve right away, garnished with the breadcrumbs, parsley, black cumin, dash of red pepper flakes and a little more lemon zest.
Bon appetit!

Ingredients: