If you like your pasta dishes packed with veggies, this pasta primavera recipe is for you. Roasted vegetables make this version extra delicious, but let’s not forget about that garlicky vegan cheese sauce!
Pasta primavera is a dish all about celebrating fresh seasonal vegetables—their rainbow of colours and variety of flavours and textures. Basically, it’s what happens when you go to the farmers market and fill your bag to the brim! Classic primavera typically has you sauté the vegetables, but my version roasts them which makes them even more delicious.
Why You’ll Love This Pasta Primavera Recipe
- It’s vegan. Traditionally, pasta primavera contains cheese and heavy cream, but this recipe is a plant-based alternative that doesn’t skimp on flavour.
- Easy to make. While roasting takes more time than sautéing the vegetables, I love that it’s a hands-off cooking method. I prep the veggies for roasting, then while they’re in the oven, I work on the rest of the recipe. (If you love roasted vegetables, try my balsamic roasted vegetables too.)
- Satisfying. A typically serving of pasta with only sauce leaves me feeling hungry for more—it’s not much food! Bulking it up with lots of vegetables makes a pasta dinner so much more filling.
Notes on Ingredients
Scroll down to the recipe card to find the ingredient quantities and recipe instructions.
For the Roasted Veggies:
- Red onion – This sweetens and mellows during the roasting process.
- Bell pepper – I use red and orange peppers, but you can substitute one of these for a yellow pepper.
- Summer squash – One zucchini or yellow squash.
- Asparagus – A small bunch is perfect.
- Cherry tomatoes – Grape tomatoes would also work.
- Broccoli florets – You can swap in cauliflower if you prefer.
- Carrots – This is a great recipe to try out some colourful heirloom varieties.
- Olive oil
- Salt and ground black pepper
For the Pasta and Sauce:
- Salt
- Bowtie pasta – You can use another shape if you’d like.
- Olive oil
- Vegan butter – I like to use my homemade vegan butter.
- Garlic
- Lemon juice – This brightens things up and cuts the richness a bit.
- Frozen peas
- Red pepper flakes – Add more or less, depending on your preferences.
- Nutritional yeast – This makes our vegan pasta primavera cheesy.
- Fresh parsley
How to Make Pasta Primavera
- Prepare. Preheat the oven to 415ºF and line 2 sheet pans with parchment paper.
- Season the veggies. Toss all of the vegetables with the olive oil, salt, and pepper.
- Roast. Divide the vegetables onto the prepared baking sheets and roast for 20-25 minutes, or until they’re tender.
- Boil the pasta. Cook the pasta in salted water until it’s al dente.
- Make the sauce. Heat the olive oil and vegan butter in a skillet set over medium heat. Add the garlic and cook until it’s fragrant, then add the lemon juice, frozen peas, and red pepper flakes.
- Put it all together. Stir the pasta and nutritional yeast into the skillet. Add a little pasta water if needed to create a creamy sauce. Fold in the roasted veggies and garnish with parsley.
Tips for Success
- Salt the pasta water. Adding salt to the boiling water before cooking your pasta seasons it from the inside out. It makes any pasta dish even tastier!
- Don’t forget to save the water. Reserving some of the starchy pasta water is a great trick for thickening and binding sauces.
- Give the vegetables space. Spread the vegetables out onto the sheet pan so there’s room for air to circulate between them. This ensures that they roast and caramelize rather than steaming in the oven.
Serving Suggestions
- Add vegan Parm. I love this cashew Parmesan cheese for sprinkling over pasta dishes like this one!
- Serve it with garlic bread. This roasted garlic bread is a favourite, but this garlic and rosemary focaccia bread would also be fabulous with pasta primavera.
- Pair it with a side salad. Round out the meal with a simple salad on the side.
- Add some protein. White beans or chickpeas are easy additions, or try this vegan chicken.
How to Store Leftovers
Transfer leftover pasta primavera to an airtight container and refrigerate for up to 4 days. Reheat it in a skillet over medium-low heat with a splash of water or broth, or in the microwave.
Can I Freeze This Recipe?
Technically speaking, you can freeze this recipe, but do be aware that the vegetables may lose their texture when thawed and reheated and the pasta is likely to be a bit mushy. If you’re okay with this, store it in an airtight container for up to 2 months and thaw in the fridge before reheating.
More Vegan Pasta Dishes
- Sun-Dried Tomato Pasta
- Pumpkin Alfredo Pasta
- Vegan Spaghetti and Meatballs
- Miso Butter Pasta
- Hummus Pasta
Enjoy friends! If you make this pasta primavera recipe, please snap a photo and tag #jessicainthekitchen on Instagram! We’d also love it if you would leave a comment below, and give the recipe a rating! Thanks so much!
Pasta Primavera
Ingredients
For the roasted veggies:
- 1 red onion roughly chopped
- 1 red bell pepper roughly chopped
- 1 orange bell pepper roughly chopped
- 1 medium zucchini or yellow squash thinly sliced
- 1 small bunch asparagus cut into 1-inch pieces
- 1 ½ cups cherry tomatoes 248 grams
- 1 cup broccoli florets chopped, 91 grams
- 2 carrots sliced into very thin rounds
- ¼ cup olive oil 59 ml
- 2 teaspoons salt 12 grams
- 1 teaspoon ground black pepper 2 grams
For the pasta and the sauce:
- 1 teaspoon salt 6 grams
- 12 ounces bowtie pasta 340 grams
- 2 tablespoons olive oil 30 ml
- 4 tablespoons vegan butter 56 grams
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice 30 ml
- 1 cup frozen peas 144 grams
- 1 teaspoon red pepper flakes 1 gram
- 1/3 cup nutritional yeast 15 grams
- ¼ cup chopped fresh parsley 15 grams
Instructions
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Line 2 sheet pans with parchment paper and preheat the oven to 415°F.
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In a large mixing bowl, toss together the onion, red bell pepper, orange bell pepper, zucchini, yellow squash, tomatoes, broccoli florets, and carrots with the olive oil, salt, and pepper. Make sure the veggies are well coated in olive oil and seasonings.
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Scatter the veggies over the prepared baking sheets and roast for 20-25 minutes or until tender.
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While the veggies are roasting, bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add the salt and then the pasta. Cook the pasta to the package’s instructions until al dente. Drain the pasta, reserving 1 cup of pasta water. Set aside.
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While the pasta is cooking, heat the olive oil and vegan butter over medium heat in a large, heavy-bottomed pan. Once the butter has melted, add the garlic and saute until fragrant. Add the lemon juice, frozen peas, and red pepper flakes. Saute for 1 minute.
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Stir the pasta into the sauce. Add the nutritional yeast and stir until it melts into the sauce. Add a little pasta water to help the process along if needed. Stir in the roasted veggies.
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Serve warm garnished with chopped fresh parsley.
Notes
To freeze: Technically speaking, you can freeze this recipe, but do be aware that the vegetables may lose their texture when thawed and reheated and the pasta is likely to be a bit mushy. If you’re okay with this, store it in an airtight container for up to 2 months and thaw in the fridge before reheating.
Nutrition
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