Inspired by summer produce and a love for pasta, we dreamt up this dish with sautéed yellow squash, red onion, roasted cherry tomatoes, and a light vegan white sauce.
The result is an incredibly hearty yet light pasta with an abundance of vegetables and greens. The perfect plant-based side or entrée for summer and beyond. Just 10 ingredients required. Let’s do this!
For the veggies, we sautéed squash with onion, then added salt, pepper, Italian herbs, and red pepper flake for more seasoning and a little heat. Once the veggies were tender, we stirred in spinach and cooked until just wilted.
Depending on the season, these veggies could be swapped out for whatever is fresh and available. Other veggies we think would be good include red bell pepper, asparagus, roasted Brussels sprouts, and roasted cauliflower. And for the spinach, we think other delicate greens would sub nicely.
For the tomatoes, we went with slow-roasted tomatoes. The process of slow roasting intensifies the flavor and makes them taste like candy!
How to Make a White Sauce For Pasta
To make a vegan white pasta sauce, we used a base of cashews because they yield a creamy texture and neutral flavor.
They’re added to a small blender with garlic for zing and nutritional yeast for cheesiness. Salt enhances all the flavors and water or almond milk is added to thin into a pourable sauce.
Then the sauce gets poured over the veggies and pasta and the mixture is tossed until combined. Then the slow-roasted tomatoes are gently stirred in. The result is a colorful vegan white pasta filled with fresh summer veggies!
Finally, we like to garnish with fresh herbs (such as basil or parsley), vegan parmesan cheese, and an extra sprinkle of red pepper flake!
We hope you LOVE this creamy white pasta! It’s:
Cheesy
Light
Comforting
Summery
Versatile
Savory
& Delicious!
Serve it on its own or alongside salads, veggies, or Italian-inspired dishes! It would pair especially well with our Chickpea Caesar Salad, Lemony Arugula Salad, or Best Vegan Meatballs.
More Vegan Pasta Recipes
- Garlic & White Wine Pasta with Brussels Sprouts
- Sun-Dried Tomato Pesto Pasta (Vegan + GF)
- Spicy Red Pasta with Lentils
If you try this recipe, let us know! Leave a comment, rate it, and don’t forget to tag a photo #minimalistbaker on Instagram. Cheers, friends!
Creamy Vegan White Pasta with Summer Vegetables
Ingredients
ROASTED TOMATOES
- 1 cup cherry / grape tomatoes, halved
- 1 tsp oil of choice
- 1 pinch sea salt
SAUCE
- 1/3 cup raw cashews
- 2 cloves garlic, plus more to taste
- 2-3 Tbsp nutritional yeast
- 1/2 tsp sea salt, plus more to taste
- 1 cup water or unsweetened almond milk (we did half of each)
PASTA
- Water to cook
- 1 healthy pinch sea salt
- 10 ounces gluten-free pasta (ensure vegan-friendly as needed // we prefer Trader Joe’s brown rice quinoa fusilli)
VEGGIES
- 1 tsp oil (or sub water, adding more as needed as it evaporates)
- 1/3 cup sliced red onion
- 1 cup sliced yellow squash or zucchini
- 1 healthy pinch each sea salt and black pepper
- 1 tsp dried Italian herbs (oregano and basil // optional)
- 1 pinch red pepper flake (optional)
- 2 cups spinach (or other delicate green // we found sturdy greens, e.g. kale, to add too much chew)
FOR SERVING optional
- Fresh parsley or basil
- Vegan parmesan cheese
- Red pepper flake
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 300 degrees F (148 C). Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Slice tomatoes in half lengthwise and toss with a little oil and sea salt. Arrange the tomatoes cut-side up and place on the center rack of your oven. Bake for 30-40 minutes, or until the edges have shriveled and the tomatoes have shrunken slightly.
- In the meantime, prepare sauce by soaking raw cashews in very hot water for 30 minutes.
- Once the cashews are almost done soaking, bring a pot of water to a boil and season with a healthy pinch of salt. Once boiling, add pasta and cook according to package instructions. Drain and set aside until serving (ideally the pasta is ready within a few minutes of serving — try to time accordingly).
- After the 30 minutes are up, drain and rinse cashews and add to a small blender. Add remaining sauce ingredients (garlic, nutritional yeast, salt, and water or almond milk — we used half water, half almond milk) and blend until creamy and smooth. The sauce should be thin and pourable (add more water as needed).
- Taste and adjust flavors as needed, adding more nutritional yeast for cheesiness, salt to taste, or garlic for zing. Set aside.
- Once your sauce is ready, the tomatoes are nearly done roasting, and the pasta is almost ready, heat a large skillet over medium heat. Once hot, add a small amount of oil to coat pan (if oil-free, use water) and add sliced onion and yellow squash. Season with salt and pepper, Italian seasonings (optional) and a pinch of red pepper flakes (optional). Ensure the squash is in a single layer and not overlapping so it gets evenly cooked.
- Once browned on the underside, use tongs or a spatula to flip the squash and cook on the other side for 3-4 minutes more. Once onion and squash are tender and slightly brown, add spinach (or other greens of choice), and stir to combine. Season with another pinch salt and pepper.
- Add cooked drained pasta to the pan and pour over the sauce. Toss to combine. Lastly, add the roasted tomatoes and stir.
- Serve immediately as is, or garnish with fresh herbs (such as parsley or basil), vegan parmesan cheese, or red pepper flake (all optional). Store leftovers covered in the refrigerator up to 3-4 days (reheat in the microwave or on the stovetop until hot, adding a little dairy-free milk if it appears dry). Not freezer friendly.
B says
Could you make the sauce ahead? Thinking this would be really tasty this weekend while camping but we don’t have a blender.
Also could you grill the veggies instead?
Yes and yes! Great ideas :) Enjoy!
Kirsten says
I tried this out to see if I would make it for Mothers Day gathering. What a flavorful dish!! I know everyone will love it!
Yay! We’re so glad the test run was a success. Thank you for the lovely review, Kirsten! xo
Megan says
I made this and added two ears of fresh corn cut off the cob when I added the spinach and it was delicious! I also used 4 cloves of roasted garlic instead of two cloves of raw.
Yum, those modifications sound lovely, Megan! Thank you for sharing! xo
Meri Schroeder says
Oh my goodness, what a wonderful recipe. I just made for dinner and we both loved it. I used zucchini and not yellow squash. I went ahead and used the entire zucchini b/c I didn’t want to have to figure out what to do with the rest; so slightly more than a cup. I also used Banza pasta which come in 8 oz packages; again it worked out great.
Amazing! Thank you for the lovely review and for sharing your modifications, Meri! xo
Laura says
This was yummy! I used the air fryer to roast my tomatoes to avoid heating up the house with the oven, and whole wheat rotini.
I was curious as to why you chose to cook the squash and onion in the pan vs roasting them like the tomatoes?
I doubled the recipe and didn’t feel like batch cooking the onion and squash so they weren’t as evenly browned as if I had done a single layer, but didn’t really affect the taste to me. Next time I might roast the onion and squash in the air fryer ahead of time too and just add them along with the tomatoes at the end.
Thank you!
Thank you for sharing, Laura! We like to cook the onion and squash in the pan because we find they get more nicely browned without the zucchini becoming too tender/mushy.
T Evans says
Incredible! One of the best recipes ever! Sooo yummy. I roasted Japanese eggplant with the tomatoes and added shallots to the red onion. Top quality, very satisfying meal. Love your recipes! 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟
We’re so glad you enjoy our recipes! Thank you so much for your kind words and lovely review! xo
Amie Chant says
Such a delicious and easy recipe! Very forgiving for the roasted veggies portion as I made this using red bell peppers instead of squash. And I changed the roasting in the oven step to using the air fryer for both the tomatoes and peppers together. I also used boiling water to speed up the cashew soak. Then reused that water in the sauce. Turned out creamy and delicious!
Lovely! Thanks so much for sharing, Amie! xo
Danielle says
I’ve made this so many times for guests and it is always a crowd pleaser! I’m wondering if I could just make the sauce ahead of time and freeze it? I know the recipe says not freezer friendly but how about just the sauce? Thanks!
Hi Danielle, we’re so glad you enjoy this recipe! We think that freezing the sauce should work, but we haven’t tried it. Let us know how it goes!
Loretta Talios says
Made this tonight with chickpea pasta, and added a tsp of miso to the sauce. Instead of roasting the tomatoes i just sauteed them with the onions. It was quite easy and super delicious!
thanks!
We’re so glad you enjoyed it, Loretta. Thanks so much for the lovely review! xo
Christin says
YUM! Just made this for dinner & it was super flavorful + easy to make. Thank you for another phenomenal dinner. Xoxo.
We’re so glad you enjoyed it, Christin. Thanks so much for the lovely review! xo
Abby says
I roasted eggplant with the tomatoes to add instead of the squash and added cannelloni beans to the sauce for some extra protein.
It came out great! I love how creamy the pasta is and really enjoy the red onion.
I’m eating my leftovers now :)
Yum! Thanks so much for the lovely review and for sharing your modifications!
Claudia says
Oh so easy & incredibly delicious!!! My additions – subbed diced shallot for the red onion, added 1 bunch of broccolini and dozen asparagus spears cut on the diagonal, 1 rough chopped red pepper. In place of spinach sautéed 1 bunch dinosaur kale with 1 Tbs pine nuts. It’s a great recipe to use all and any fresh vegetables in the fridge which is what I did. Thanks, Dana, you make it so easy for me to be my daughter and son-in-law’s personal vegan chef.
Love it! Thanks so much for the review and for sharing your modifications, Claudia!
Cedella says
It’s a great to go pasta, you can alter the garlicky taste of the sauce (which I prefer lots of garlic so I added 3 cloves). I added my summer garden veggies, which I also love, lowering the chances of food waste is always a +!
Thank you for sharing, Cedella! xo
Catherine says
Made this for the first time last night. This will become a new favorite in our home as my daughter and I plan to have this often for lunch. 🙂
The only thing I did differently is I substituted a sweet bell pepper in place of the tomatoes, and added carrot as we like a lot of vegetables. For the options I did add both the Italian herbs and the red pepper flakes, adding even more flakes to my meal, and I used 2 T. of the nutritional yeast.
We served this with garlic bread made with vegan spread and nutritional yeast.
There are so many vegetables that could go well with this dish. I plan to add roasted asparagus next time.
Yum! Thank you so much for sharing this recipe.
We’re so glad to hear it, Catherine! Thank you for sharing! xo
Suzy says
Delicious recipe! I love all the protein from the pasta and the yummy veggies. It made easing veggies a delight instead of a chore. I did substitute canned Alfredo sauce as I did not have raw cashews on hand. I will try again with the raw cashews. Thank you!
Yum! Thanks for the lovely review, Suzy!
Valerie Campbell says
Made this early this morning and tasted it and it is great. I will use one portion this evening and freeze the rest in one portion sizes. I did make a change in the greens and used radish leaves which I loved cooked also I am inundated with radishes so added a few of those too. Would love to see a recipe for a vegan radish quiche sometime.
Ohh, yum! Thanks for the lovely review, Valerie!
Andrew Romanelli says
I’ve made this several times with both yellow and green squash. It’s outstanding and non vegans love the creaminess. I found cutting the squash a bit thicker and roasting the squash easier (375 for about 20 minutes).
We’re so glad you enjoy it, Andrew! Thank you for sharing your experience!
Anne says
I added 1/4 cup pesto to the sauce
Yum! That sounds amazing, Anne!
AJ says
I love this recipe!!! I did not roast my tomatoes due to time restraints but it still came out so yummy. The sauce thickened up nicely and has a good flavor. Another great recipe!!! No one else in my house is vegan so I get this for my lunches 😁
Thanks so much for the lovely review, AJ. We are so glad you enjoyed it! Next time, would you mind leaving a star rating with your review? It’s super helpful for us and other readers. Thanks so much! xo
Melissa says
This is one of my favorite summer recipes! I usually end up oven roasting all of the veggies together, just for simplicity and I like them really cooked to death. I can’t wait to try with grilled veggies too this summer! I love making this and taking leftovers to work for lunch. One day I didn’t have time to heat in the microwave and it was even amazing cold!
Kevin says
Superb! I doubled the recipe for a party of 6. The only change I made was the addition of a tbl of lemon juice to the sauce. The veggie and pasta combinations are endless. For me the fresh basil put it over the top. What a great dish. Thanks.
Woohoo! So glad you enjoyed, Kevin. Thanks so much for the great review!
Kate Meyer says
To be fair, I modified this recipe quite a bit. I wanted to make more because it sounded so good. Unfortunately, it tasted bland. We added a ton more spices and cheese, trying to make it a little better and succeeded a little. Might be that I just wanted to have extra so added a little more of all ingredients, so maybe just make according to recipe or others comments. Unfortunately, I’ll try a different MB recipe next time.
Sorry to hear that, Kate! Better luck with the next one!
Penelope says
great recipe! I followed it exactly except 1. added double the cherry tomatoes, and 2. added miso to the cashew sauce instead of salt, and a little bit of preserved lemon paste. It was phenomenal! No surprise there though — I can always rely on Minimalist Baker for amazing recipes. Oh and I also used a mix of Cybele’s Free to Eat purple and green vegetable pastas as a way to add even more plant protein!
Woohoo! Thanks for the great review and for sharing your modifications, Penelope! xo
Lori Donohue says
Vegan, but allergic to nuts. Have trouble making any sauces without them or tofu (soy) – also not able to eat. Any ideas?
Hi Lori, for the almond milk, we’d suggest rice or hemp milk. And for the cashews, we’d suggest hemp seeds and/or sunflower seeds. But we haven’t tried with these modifications and can’t guarantee results. Let us know how it goes!
Danielle says
I subbed sunflower seeds for the cashews for tonight’s dinner, and it turned out great!
Yay! Thank you for sharing, Danielle! xo
Kim Browning says
Such a great recipe! A “cheesy” pasta dish that doesn’t leave you feeling heavy. I made the dish with red pepper, red onion, zucchini, roasted tomatoes (mad in the air fryer). I used 3 cloves of garlic and 3 Tbsp of nutritional yeast. 1/2 cup water and 1/2 cup oat milk. I will make this again for sure.
We’re so glad you enjoyed it, Kim! Thank you for the lovely review and for sharing your modifications! xo
Samantha says
Soo delish and very easy! Thank you 🙏
Thanks for the lovely review, Samantha! xo