Creamy Vegan Roasted Red Pepper Pasta

This creamy vegan roasted red pepper pasta is rich, filling, flavorful and so delicious! It's made with an easy cashew cream sauce and roasted red pepper and carrots. You can even make the sauce ahead of time for a super quick weeknight dinner!

Why we love this recipe

• Creamy, rich and delicious: Our roasted red pepper cream sauce is made with a cashew cream base. Soaked cashews + roasted red peppers blend up into a beautifully smooth, silky sauce that perfectly coats pasta!
• Easy to make: this recipe only requires a few simple hands on steps and the sauce comes together easily in a blender.
• Meal prep friendly: you can actually make the sauce up to a few days ahead of time and pour it over cooked pasta for a 15 minute weeknight dinner!
• Vegan & gluten free friendly: a great recipe for just about any dietary needs. (And we promise, nobody will miss the dairy!)

Ingredients

Here are the key ingredients you'll need to make this vegan roasted red pepper pasta:

Ingredient Notes

• Cashews: cashews are used for a rich, creamy texture in place of cream for the sauce. Make sure to use raw, unsalted cashews, otherwise it will change the flavor of the sauce.
• Red bell pepper: we use fresh red bell pepper, which we roast for about 20 minutes before adding to the sauce. If you want to save prep time, you can use store-bought, jarred roasted red peppers instead.
• Carrots: carrots add a touch of sweetness and earthiness to the sauce. (Plus, another serving of veggies!) They're roasted alongside the red peppers for a quick addition to the sauce.
• Shallots: feel free to substitute with yellow onion. 1 small shallot is about equal to ½ cup diced, which is typically about half of a regular-sized onion.
• Nutritional yeast adds a cheesy flavor the sauce while keeping it vegan. You can find it at pretty much any grocery store! I also love using it in this caesar dressing.
• Turmeric is mostly used for color in this recipe. Feel free to omit.
• Smoked paprika: the smokiness adds SO much flavor to this sauce! However, if you don't like smoked paprika, you can sub with regular sweet paprika instead.
• Pasta: we used gluten free rotini, but really just about any pasta shape works well here!

Step-by-step instructions

Prep: Preheat oven to 400˚F. Soak cashews in room temperature water for 1 hour, then drain and rinse. 

Cook pasta in salted water according to package directions. Reserve one cup of the pasta water – you'll need it to make the sauce. (If you forget and drain all of the pasta water, you can always sub with tap water.)

Prep vegetables: Slice and de-seed the peppers and quarter. Slice the carrots. Toss the carrots and pepper in about 1 tablespoon olive oil and a pinch of salt and transfer to sheet pan.

Quarter the shallot and toss in another teaspoon or so of olive oil and transfer to sheet pan. Drizzle some olive oil and salt over the garlic cloves and wrap in a small square of aluminum foil (this prevents burning) and place on sheet pan.

Roast the vegetables for about 20 minutes, until peppers are tender. Remove from oven and immediately transfer the peppers to a bowl and cover with aluminum foil (or reusable wrap). This will steam the peppers.

After 10 minutes, remove the foil and use your hands to peel the skin off of the pepper. (If you have a super high power blender, you can skip this step.)

Blend sauce: Add roasted peppers, carrots, shallot, garlic, cashews, salt, nutritional yeast, lemon juice, pasta water, turmeric, paprika and pepper to a high speed blender and blend until the cashews break down into a smooth paste. Slowly stream in the olive oil and continue blending until smooth and creamy.

Pour over cooked pasta and toss well to coat. Add more reserved pasta water if needed to thin out.

Expert Tips and FAQs

• Make ahead: Follow the instructions to make the roasted red pepper cashew cream sauce, then store in a sealed container in the refrigerator for up to a week. When ready to eat, heat in a saucepan and toss with cooked pasta.
  • You may need to add extra water to thin out the sauce after it's been refrigerated for a few days. If you end up adding more than a few tbsp, taste and increase the seasoning as needed.
• For a spicier sauce, feel free to add red pepper flakes or chili powder to the sauce.
• If you forget to soak the cashews for the roasted red pepper sauce, or don't have time, you can soak them in hot water for 15-20 minutes. The sauce may not be quite as creamy, though, and you may have to blend for a bit longer. Taste-wise, it will be the same.
• Serving suggestions: I like topping this pasta with toasted pine nuts, fresh parsley, vegan parmesan and red pepper flakes. It would also be great with some fresh basil!
• Storage: store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. Reheat in the microwave or on the stovetop until warm. You may need to add extra water to loosen up the sauce.

Related Recipes

Tried this recipe? Please leave a star ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ rating below and/or a review in the comments section further down the page. You can also stay in touch with us through social media by following us on Instagram, Pinterest, and Facebook or by subscribing to our newsletter.

Print

📖 Recipe