This creamy vegan pasta is my favorite recipe to make when I’m craving delicious food but don’t have much time to spend in the kitchen. It takes just over 30 minutes to make from start to finish, so it’s the perfect weekend meal. All you have to do is boil the pasta, blend up the sauce, onion, and broccoli, and mix it. You can then sit down to devour veggies and warm bowls of noodles coated with this creamy vegan pasta sauce. While this sauce looks like a rich cream or cheese sauce, it’s a tangy blend of lemon juice, nutritional yeast, and whiten beans. So this recipe is not only delicious, but it’s also healthy.
INGREDIENTS
- 2 cups small shell pasta
- One tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
- One small onion, chopped
- 5 cups broccoli florets, chopped leaves, and stems
- ½ cup toasted pine nuts
- Lemon wedges, for serving
For the vegan pasta sauce:
- 1½ cups white beans, rinsed and drained
- Three tablespoon lemon juice
- ¼ cup vegetable broth
- Two tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- ¼ cup nutritional yeast
- ¼ teaspoon onion powder
- Freshly ground black pepper
- ½ teaspoon sea salt
- One garlic clove, minced
INSTRUCTIONS
- In a blender, combine the white beans, olive oil, broth, nutritional yeast, onion powder, lemon juice, garlic, pepper, salt, and blend until smooth. Set aside.
- Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Prepare the pasta according to the instructions on the package. Drain and set aside.
- Heat 1 tbsp. Of olive oil in a large pan over medium heat. Add the onion until soft, about 5 minutes.
- Stir in the chopped broccoli to steam for 2 to 3 minutes or until soft but still bright green. Add the pasta, then stir in ¾ of the sauce, adding more broth if it is not so smooth.
- Add more salt according to taste, add pepper and lemon juice, as desired. Top with the pine nuts and serve with lemon wedges on the side.
