April 21, 2022

Roasted Red Pepper Pasta Sauce (Vegan)

Name: Roasted Red Pepper Pasta Sauce (Vegan)
Prep time: 5 min
Cook time: 40 min
Total time: 50 min
Yield: 3
Ingredients: 2 red bell peppers; 1 cup cauliflower; 2 tbsp olive oil, split between steps; 3 cloves garlic, minced; 1/2 onion, diced; 1 tsp salt; pepper to taste; 1/4 cup sun-dried tomatoes; 1 tbsp nutritional yeast; 1 pinch red pepper flakes; 1/2 cup water; 8-12 oz pasta; 2 tbsp Basil

Recipes, Dinner, Lunch, Pasta, Vegetarian, Weeknight Meals

This creamy roasted red pepper pasta sauce is absolutely delicious – and totally vegan!

Oh my goodness, I’m not sure I’ve EVER shared a recipe that has this much excitement around it!!! My first try got a swarm of DMs… and then once I said that I nailed it AND it’s vegan on stories yesterday, it was game over. I swear, recipes can be hit or miss over on Instagram, but healthy pasta dishes are truly your jam. Which works out well, because they’re mine too 😉

This idea came to me last month when I was chatting with a gal about how she can’t have tomatoes anymore the same week I was chatting with another gal about how she would love more vegan recipes/vegan substitutes. A few days later, I was cooking peppers and onions for dinner and it hit me – I should make a red pepper pasta sauce!

Since there are a ton of other sauces like this out there on the internet, I really wanted to avoid cream/milk and cheese to keep it vegan. In addition, instead of just using a non-dairy substitute, I wanted to make it creamy with a boost of nutrients from cauliflower. Why not, right?!

Well, it took me a few tries to get the flavor and consistency right… but I am SO happy with how this turned out. It’s silky and comforting, and absolutely delicious with chickpea noodles if you’re gluten free. And while I did sneak some sun-dried tomatoes in, you can leave them out if you are allergic to tomatoes and it should still turn out delicious!

How To Make Vegan Roasted Red Pepper Pasta Sauce

Ingredients

2 red bell peppers
1 cup cauliflower
2 tbsp olive oil, split between steps
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 onion, diced
1 tsp salt
1/4 cup sun-dried tomatoes
pepper to taste
1 tbsp nutritional yeast
1 pinch red pepper flakes
1/2 cup water
8-12 oz pasta (I used an 8oz box of Banza!)
2 tbsp Basil

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees.

2. Line a baking sheet and place the 2 red peppers in the middle with the cauliflower surrounding them. (I use frozen cauliflower for this recipe because it’s easy to keep on hand!) Toss everything in 1/2 tbsp of olive oil and season lightly with salt.

3. Roast for 30 minutes, flipping the peppers halfway.

4. While that is cooking, cut the onion and garlic. Add 1/2 tbsp of olive oil to a pan and saute over medium heat, until the onion is tender and translucent, about 3-5 minutes.

5. When the vegetables are done, transfer the peppers to a bowl and cover with tin foil for 10 minutes.

6. Add the roasted cauliflower to a blender, along with the cooked onion and garlic, nutritional yeast, sun-dried tomatoes, red pepper flakes, the remaining 1 tbsp of olive oil, and water.

7. After 10 minutes, uncover the peppers and remove the skin, seeds, and stems. Add them to the blender.

8. Blend until the sauce becomes smooth and creamy. Give it a taste test and adjust the salt, pepper, and/or red pepper flakes to your liking.

9. Transfer the sauce back to the pan you used to cook the onion/garlic, and turn the heat to medium low.

10. Add your drained pasta and stir to coat all of the noodles.

11. Roughly chop 1-2 tbsp of fresh basil and stir it in to the pasta.

12. Serve hot and enjoy!

Roasted Red Pepper Pasta Sauce Tips and Variations

Make it tomato-less

While I recommend keeping the sun dried tomatoes in because they add to the flavor and consistency of the sauce, you can definitely leave them out if you are allergic to tomatoes!

Make it gluten free

I made this with Banza chickpea noodles, and it was honestly AWESOME. You could also make this with brown rice pasta, lentil pasta, or even hearts of palm or zucchini noodles!

Use More Pasta

You might have noticed that I recommend 8-12 oz of pasta… but any regular pasta box is 16 oz! If you are hoping to make a full pound, you have 2 options. The first one would be to reserve some pasta water and thin out the sauce when you add your noodles. The second would be to just double the sauce recipe! That way you have plenty of creamy deliciousness to go around 😉

Use Jarred Red Peppers

While it is possible to use jarred peppers, I really recommend against it! You have to roast the cauliflower anyway, and you get a different flavor from roasting fresh red peppers yourself vs. the peppers that sit in an acidic brine in your fridge. Plus, it’s cheaper! If you are still totally against roasting your own, a 16 oz jar from the store roughly equals 2 peppers.

Use Frozen Cauliflower

Want to avoid buying a whole head of cauliflower just for this recipe? Buy FROZEN! Truly, this is the best hack ever. No chopping, no extras that you don’t know what to do with… just roast a cup of frozen cauliflower with the peppers and then put the rest of the bag in the freezer for next time!