Vegan Green Goddess Pasta

This vegan green goddess pasta is something special. Ribbons of pasta are tossed in a luxuriously creamy vegan green goddess sauce. The sauce is made by blending cooked cauliflower, lots of herbs (think tarragon, parsley, chives), garlic, nutritional yeast, lemon juice, capers, salt, and pepper. The result is a spring green sauce that offers a garlicky bite and herbaceous aroma. Toss it with ribbons of warm tagliatelle and chopped arugula and finish with a sprinkle of hemp seeds and nutritional yeast for a kick of plant-powered protein.

Give me all the green things. Especially those with a goddess-like glow. You feel me?

Warm ribbons of vegan tagliatelle are tossed with peppery arugula and a glamorously green, luxuriously creamy, and herbaceous sauce.

That sauce-kissed pasta gets nestled into bowls and sprinkled with protein-packed hemp seeds and nutritional yeast, yielding a plant-powered dish that is just as nourishing as it is comforting.

Have yourself a look…

Now back to that sauce.

It’s a play on the beloved green goddess dressing, which is traditionally made with mayo, buttermilk, chives, parsley, tarragon, lemon juice, anchovies, garlic, salt, and pepper.

In this super saucy vegan version, cauliflower steps in for mayo, almond milk steps in for buttermilk, briny capers step in for salty anchovies, and a few other flavor-boosting ingredients (e.g., nutritional yeast, olive oil) are added for depth and complexity.

And those herbs? Well, they’re allll there.

The entire dish comes together in a speedy 45 minutes or less and requires just five simple steps:

1. Cook the pasta and add it to a bowl with chopped arugula.
2. Boil the cauliflower.
3. Blend the cauliflower with almond milk, garlic, parsley, chives, tarragon, lemon juice, nutritional yeast, a bit of olive oil, capers, sea salt, and black pepper.
4. Pour the sauce over that warm, ribbon-like pasta, and toss to coat.
5. Pile the pasta high and sprinkle to taste with hemp seeds and nutritional yeast.

This pasta’s soft green glow is easy on the eyes, and its garlicky, herby, well-seasoned flavors are incredibly satisfying. Plus, it’s packed with nutritional oomph.

No doubt, a goddess of triple-threat proportions.

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Vegan Green Goddess Pasta

Ribbons of pasta are tossed in a luxuriously creamy vegan green goddess sauce. The sauce is made by blending cooked cauliflower, lots of herbs (think tarragon, parsley, chives), garlic, nutritional yeast, lemon juice, capers, salt, and pepper. The result is a spring green sauce that offers a garlicky bite and herbaceous aroma. Toss it with ribbons of warm tagliatelle and chopped arugula and finish with a sprinkle of hemp seeds and nutritional yeast for a kick of plant-powered protein.

Course Bigger Bites, Pasta

Cuisine plant-based, Vegan

Prep Time 15 minutes

Cook Time 30 minutes

Total Time 45 minutes

Author Ashley

Ingredients

Pasta

• 12 ounces regular or gluten-free tagliatelle, rigatoni, or fusilli pasta

Creamy Green Goddess Sauce

• 2 1/2 cups small cauliflower florets
• 1 cup unsweetened plain almond milk
• 2 cloves garlic, smashed and peeled
• 1/3 cup stemmed and roughly chopped flat-leaf parsley
• 1/4 cup roughly chopped chives
• 1 to 2 tablespoons stemmed and roughly chopped tarragon, to taste
• 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
• 1 tablespoon nutritional yeast flakes, plus more to taste
• 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
• 2 to 3 teaspoons jarred capers drained, to taste
• 1 teaspoon sea salt, plus more to taste
• Freshly ground black pepper

Toppings

• 2 cups baby arugula, chopped
• 2 to 4 tablespoons shelled hemp seeds, to taste

Instructions

For the Pasta

• Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil.
• Add the pasta and cook until al dente.
• Drain, reserving 1 cup of the pasta water, and transfer the cooked pasta to a large bowl. Add the chopped arugula, toss, and set aside.

For the Creamy Green Goddess Sauce

• Meanwhile, bring a medium pot of water to a boil. Add the cauliflower florets to the pot and boil for 7 minutes or until very fork-tender. Strain off the water.
• Add the boiled cauliflower florets, almond milk, garlic, parsley, chives, tarragon, lemon juice, nutritional yeast, olive oil, capers, sea salt, and black pepper to a high-speed blender.
• Blend on high for 2 minutes or until completely smooth and creamy.

To Assemble

• Pour the sauce into a large sauté pan. Heat over medium heat and whisk constantly for 2 minutes, or until warm.
• Pour the sauce over the pasta and toss to coat.
• If needed, stir in the pasta water, 1/4 cup at a time, to thin the sauce.
• Remove from the heat.
• Taste and season with more sea salt and black pepper, if desired.
• Top with the hemp seeds and more nutritional yeast, if desired.
• Serve immediately.