onRoasted Cauliflower Pasta with Toasted Walnuts, Parsley, Garlic and Lemon Zest- a healthy vegan dinner that can be made in 30 minutes flat. Video!
“Following the invisible, into the unknown.” Marci
Here’s a tasty little number that can be made in under 30 minutes – Roasted Cauliflower Pasta with Toasted Walnuts, Parsley, Garlic and Lemon zest. The lemon and garlic give it a nice zesty flavor, the parsley a delicious freshness and the toasted walnuts, great texture and earthiness. If you like heat, chili flakes are always a great option. It can be left vegan or dusted with pecorino.
If going grain-free, try chickpea flour noodles for extra protein! This recipe uses a whole head of cauliflower and is zesty and bright-tasting, and the leftovers make a nice lunch.
Roasted Cauliflower Pasta | 60-second video
How to make Roasted Cauliflower Pasta:
Step 1: Cut the cauliflower into bite-size pieces, season with olive oil, zest, and garlic and roast until tender and crispy.
Step 2: Cook the pasta and reserve some pasta water.
Remember, you can always choose pasta made with bean flour if going grain-free. 😉
Step 3: Toast the walnuts in the oven 10 minutes at 350F – do this after the cauliflower is done. Or toast in a dry skillet.
Toasted Walnuts and fresh parsley add flavor and texture.
Step 4: Toss everything together, adding the remaining ingredients in a bowl.
On the homefront: Suddenly, life has become simple. We finished our last catering event over the weekend, and just like that 10 years of catering comes to an end.
I would be lying if I didn’t tell you how ecstatic I am. Not because I dislike catering – I actually really loved the food creation part of it, the menu design, the cooking and prepping and the coming together of people to celebrate life events – all of this was very fulfilling and I feel truly honored to have been a part of so many celebrations.
But the stress of the events themselves (because I like things perfect), and the millions of details that needed tending to, began taking a toll on us physically and energetically. And so we (Brian) figured out a way to pare down our lives, so we wouldn’t have to keep doing this until we die.
And all of a sudden here we are- and I find myself with a luxurious amount of time. And a horizon in front of us that feels so open and wide and beautifully unknown. And it’s the unknown part that actually feels exhilarating. For the first time ever, I have not planned out my life. And it feels amaaaaaaaazing!
If you were wondering about the quote, it’s from a person I don’t know, Marci, who has this as her tagline on Insight Timer. Insight timer is a meditation app, full of great resources to help one meditate if so inclined. It also connects you with other people near you and around the world who are meditating at the same time as you. Kinda neat.
Marci, I don’t know anything about you, only that you live near me in Spokane, and that sometimes we meditate at the same time. Your tagline pops up and it has been such a gift to me. So thank you Marci, for sharing your beautiful light into this world and I hope somehow this finds you.
You may also like:
- No-Boil Baked Mushroom Ziti
- Orecchiette with Creamy Carrot Miso Sauce
- Garlicky Chard Pasta with Lemon and toasted bread crumbs
- Pasta with Mushrooms and creamy vegan sauce.
- Garlicky Cruciferous Pasta
Hope you enjoy this simple delicious Roasted Cauliflower Pasta!
happy week friends!
xo
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Roasted Cauliflower Pasta with Lemon and Garlic
- Prep Time: 10
- Cook Time: 20
- Total Time: 30
- Yield: 2-3
- Category: vegan main
- Method: roasted
- Cuisine: mediterranean
- Diet: Vegetarian
Description
Ingredients
- 1 head cauliflower
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
-
3 minced garlic cloves (divided)
- salt and pepper to taste
- 1/4 teaspoons chili flakes
- lemon zest from one lemon (divided)
- 4–6 ounces pasta (bucatini, linguini, spaghetti or any other gluten-free noodle)
- 1 cup fresh chopped Italian parsley
- 1/2 cup toasted walnuts, chopped
- 1 fresh garlic clove- very finely minced
- A generous drizzle of olive oil to coat,
- salt, pepper and chili flakes -to taste
- finely grated pecorino– optional but good
- 2 tablespoons capers– optional, but good!
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425 F
- Trim and cut cauliflower into small bite-sized florets and place in a bowl. Drizzle with olive oil to coat, sprinkle with salt and pepper, 1/2 of the lemon zest, 2/3 rds of the minced garlic and some chili flakes. Toss well and spread out in a single layer on a parchment-lined sheet pan, and place into the middle of the hot oven. Roast until tender and golden and caramelized in places, about 20-25 minutes.
- While the cauliflower is roasting, cook the pasta in 2 quarts of water with 1 tablespoon salt. When done, drain, and reserve 1 cup pasta water, and place pasta in a bowl.
- Drizzle pasta generously with olive oil to coat the noodles, then add the remaining finely minced garlic (raw), the chopped parsley, remaining lemon zest, crushed toasted walnuts, capers and when cauliflower is done, add it to the bowl and toss. If it feels dry, add a little hot pasta water. Sprinkle with pecorino and chili flakes.
- Taste, adjust salt and pepper and add more if necessary. If it tastes bland, it probably needs a little more salt. 😉
- Divide among 2-3 bowls.
Notes
Leftovers are great for lunch! Walnuts can be toasted in a 350 oven for 10-15 minutes on a sheet pan, or toasted in a dry skillet over medium-low heat, stirring constantly.
Keywords: Cauliflower pasta, vegan pasta recipes, pasta with roasted cauliflower,
I made this w/our homegrown cauliflower! I used Angel Hair Pasta (not GF).The flavors melded together w/lemon olive oil.I added spinach instead of parsley. My husband liked it with the capers & fresh Parmesan. I definitely will be making again. Thanks
★★★★
Hooray for homegrown cauliflower! Sounds great Annie!
Please include the amount of each nutrient and not the percentage. I, and many others with the same health condition, must keep track of phosphorus and potassium in our diets. Other blogs that I follow give the grams etc.
Hi Lena, sorry the nutrition plug-in I use, only offers it in this format. I will look and see if I can adjust the settings.
Thank you.
I have made two feasting at home recipes in the past two weeks. This one and the baked ziti with mushrooms in a cast iron. My husband and I love the flavors! I think we have met our match with a “dinner idea” blog/website. Thank you so much for your posts. Looking forward to trying more!
★★★★★
Awesome Amy- Thanks for being here!
Your recipe is for toasted Walnuts – please advise on how to toast them. And, removed where it says toasted almonds give the recipe it’s flavor.
Oops, thanks updated the recipe.
Very good. Fast and easy
★★★★★
Delicious. I made this and added some baby spinach leaves at the end, along with sour cream, the juice of the lemon and extra pasta water to make it saucier. The chili and the capers really seal the deal!
★★★★
Really yummy! I made it without walnuts and still tasted great. I also added the juice of the lemon I zested at the very end and a couple cloves of raw garlic to give it a bit of a kick. Will definitely make again w/some capers.
Followed recipe exactly but left out lemon zest & capers as spouse is allergic (added the zest to my helping which definitely enhanced flavor). Overall tasty but sauce is rather dry. Will make again but would love to hear how others enhanced sauce moisture.
The best way is to utilize the pasta water- using more as needed!
This is my favorite pasta past couple months. Just love it!! Easy go to veggie meal👍
★★★★★
We loved this! But now I have to make it again because I forgot the capers.
★★★★★
My Granddaughter is making this for me tomorrow. I told her I’d bring a salad. Any recommendations that would compliment this dish?
Everyday Kale Salad would be tasty!
Had to take a moment and gives THANKS for such a delicious dinner!! Who knew that pasta and cauliflower could be such good friends. Loved every bite of it, followed the recipe to a T.
Thanks Deb!
Just made this Sylvia and it was delicious — and then some!! I highly recommend including the capers. I used thin red lentil/sweet potato pasta noodles because I needed to make it GF and that is what I had in the pantry. I really appreciate the mix of flavors. Thank you!
★★★★★
Hi Sylvia, I just made this dish and it was sensational, thank you so much. I’ve only just realised I forgot the walnuts but it didn’t take away from the flavour.
Delicious!!
★★★★★
‘absolutely amazing – we really enjoyed this recipe and have tried many more! Thank-you so much for sharing all these wonderful recipes!
★★★★★
This is a great dish- for someone who makes roasted cauliflower almost weekly, this was a nice variation on that theme. I love the seasoning- the combination of the walnuts with the lemon zest, garlic and I think the red pepper to spice it up a bit is a must. Thanks!
★★★★
Delicious and fast!
★★★★★
I love everything you share on your blog, from recipes to insight to incredible photography. But I wanted to share my thoughts re. portion size as detailed in this particular recipe. First, it’s a great riff on a classic Pugliese pasta dish that uses cauliflower as the main condiment ingredient. I loved the addition of lemon zest, which wouldn’t be found in the original southern Italian version but added a bright note that elevates the dish. But it’s the pasta portion size that feels wrong. Two ounces of pasta per person is exactly half of what is considered a normal portion in Italy, where a first course pasta portion standard is 100 grams (4 ounces) per person. And in Italy, 100 grams of pasta would be preceded by an antipasto and followed by a second course and some kind of contorno (vegetable preparations salad, etc.). I do appreciate that the cauliflower is dominant here, which is great, but most people would expect to consume at least 4 ounces of pasta for a main dish, which brings the calorie count north of 700 calories per person. I have no problem with the higher calorie count, but readers looking for a lower calorie entree might feel misled by the portion size to calorie ratio here.
The smaller pasta portion is appealing to me.
This was soo good. I substitute the pasta for the hearts of palm noodles at Trader Joe’s and it was a huge hit. One of the best pasta dishes I’ve made. Thank you!
★★★★★
Love this recipe! In fact, I’m making it again this evening.
I prefer pecans to walnuts and it’s still delicious!
★★★★★
The whole family loved this. Have decided to get more serious about eating a more plant based diet and hit lucky finding this recipe to get started. The toasted walnuts, garlic, chilli and lemon zest gave this a wonderful and surprising depth of flavour. However, after reading a previous comment I did increase the pasta amount to feed a 6′ 5″ hungry man!
★★★★★
it was good although definitely add more seasoning. For me it was bland but if you adjust the seasonings this is a great meal!
★★★★
This has become one of our favorite recipes, and it is now in our weekly rotation. It is so easy to prepare on a weeknight and so healthy and flavorful. Thank you Sylvia!
★★★★★
I simply loved this recipe. The toasted almonds, lemon zest, garlic – each ingredient added it’s own charm. It tastes amazing!!
★★★★★
I made this and it tasted amazing!! The lemon zest and garlic and roasted walnuts – each ingredient added it’s own charm.
★★★★★
Excellent recipe! It tasted so good, particularly the lemon zest. The best part of this recipe was that it was easy to make.
Bookmarking this recipe for I’ll be making it again and again!
★★★★★
Just made this for dinner. It was excellent, and I recommend the capers at the end, however, the portions are not so great.
There is no way this alone can be dinner for 2 or even more people. It seemed short of a meal to me so I made 6 ounces of pasta instead. I am still hungry and making a 4th meal right now. My wife and I split this evenly and we both weigh about a buck 40. We aren’t giant competition eaters. Other people mentioned leftovers.
How in the h&ll do you have leftovers from this?
★★★★
Most of the pasta dishes on the blog are light on the pasta and heavy on the vegetable. I like to switch the porportions. This one calls for a whole head of cauliflower. Not sure if you used that much?
I agree with those who feel that the pasta serving is a little short and I considered that I was cooking an entire head of cauliflower thinking it would be plenty for the 2 of us. It was so yummy we ate all of it so now what do I do for lunch??? Lol. This is my new favorite!
★★★★★
You can always add more pasta!
Me and my family loved this recipe. We are big pasta lovers and this is the perfect dish. Super easy to make! This is above 5 stars. Thank you so much for sharing this recipe!!! 🙂
★★★★★