This Roasted Cauliflower Pasta is a super easy weeknight meal that could work as a meatless main dish or as a side dish.
I’ve got a new super easy weeknight meal for you. This Roasted Cauliflower Pasta could work as a main dish (if you sometimes like to skip meat like we do) or as a side dish. We’ve really grown to love cauliflower, especially roasted, so I hope your family enjoys this meal as much as mine does.
Roasted Cauliflower Pasta
This Roasted Cauliflower Pasta is a super easy weeknight meal that could work as a meatless main dish or as a side dish.
Print Recipe
Servings: 4 people
Ingredients
- 8 ounces whole-wheat pasta (reserve 1/2 cup of the cooking water)
- 1 head cauliflower
- 4 cloves garlic (minced)
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1/2 teaspoon thyme (dried)
- 1/4 teaspoon pepper
- 1/2 lemon (juiced)
- 1/2 cup walnuts (chopped)
- 1/2 cup parmesan cheese (grated)
- 1/4 cup heavy cream
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- parsley (Italian, chopped (optional garnish))
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 450 degrees F. Boil noodles according to package directions and drain while reserving 1/2 cup of the cooking water.
- Chop cauliflower into 1 - 2 inch florets (discarding large stems). Toss on a baking sheet with garlic, olive oil, thyme, pepper, and lemon juice. Bake until the cauliflower just begins to turn brown and is easily pierced with a fork, about 20 - 22 minutes, stirring once or twice.
- To toast the walnuts, add them to the baking sheet with the cauliflower and put it all back in the oven for 2 - 3 minutes while keeping a close eye on it because they can go from brown to burnt very quickly!
- Meanwhile, toss the noodles with the reserved cooking water, Parmesan cheese, heavy cream, and salt. Stir in the cauliflower mixture and heat on medium-low until the sauce thickens. Divide among pasta bowls, garnish with parsley if desired, and serve warm.
Notes
We recommend organic ingredients when feasible.
Nutrition Facts
Nutrition Facts
Roasted Cauliflower Pasta
Amount Per Serving
Calories 505
Calories from Fat 243
% Daily Value*
Fat 27g42%
Saturated Fat 8g50%
Cholesterol 31mg10%
Sodium 391mg17%
Potassium 674mg19%
Carbohydrates 55g18%
Fiber 4g17%
Sugar 4g4%
Protein 19g38%
Vitamin A 325IU7%
Vitamin C 77.4mg94%
Calcium 226mg23%
Iron 3.5mg19%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
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Do you think there is a way to do it nut-free for allergies in our home or should we skip this one and the walnuts are imperative? Thanks! Love your recipes and cookbooks!!
Hi Sarah, while the toasted walnuts definitely add to the flavor and texture, you can omit if needed. We’d love to hear how it turns out for you. – Nicole
We love this recipe, but I don’t see it on the recipe index. Did I miss it?
Hi there. Thanks for letting us know. We’ll get it in there. ;)
My 9-year old daughter claims she hates cauliflower (despite us having quite often). When she saw me making this for dinner she asked “Why are you ruining pasta by putting cauliflower in it?” Silly girl then asked for seconds once she tried it! This will be one of our go to meals. All 4 of us loved it!
I made this tonight for dinner and it was delicious!! Super easy and even my kids ate the noodles (minus the cauliflower with other veggies on the side =). Will definitely be making again!
I’ve made so many really yummy recipes from this site but this is not one of them. I followed the recipe but there was not near enough sauce for the pasta and it never got thick. The lemon on the cauliflower didn’t taste good at all. Thankfully I made an awesome salad so my family didn’t go hungry…
I’m sorry to hear that it didn’t go over well with your family Carol – thanks for your feedback.
Since this recipe has been posted I’ve made it multiple times–my husband and I love it! We originally roasted the cauliflower in the oven like the recipe states, but for us, it ended up being easier to cook it in the skillet and we haven’t noticed any difference in flavor. This is a weekly dinner staple now!
I’m glad you enjoyed it as much as we did Kaleigh! And I love that you found a shortcut :)
I really like this idea. I want to use that skinny Chinese pasta instead of the ordinary one. The skinny pasta tend to soak the flavours from the sauce better… Or at least that’s my opinion.
Nice recipe !! And that’s my favourite cauliflower in it too!!
This sounds like a great recipe! I am also non dairy and non gluten. I will try this with Almond milk in place of heavy cream. Any suggestions for the Parmesan substitution (all-natural of course)?
Also, I have been buying non-gluten alternatives to pasta…
Isn’t pasta in general (whether it’s regular pasta or gluten-free pasta) a processed food? My goal is to avoid preservatives and be as all-natural as possible.
Thanks for your help! I am really enjoying your blog and recipes!
Yes, even if you make it yourself, all pasta is technically processed. However, unless you are gluten free there is nothing wrong with minimally processed wheat pasta. Just make sure you buy WHOLE wheat pasta. Bella Terra, Trader Joe’s and DeLallo all make 1 ingredient organic whole wheat pastas. The 1 ingredient is organic durum whole wheat. I buy different brands depending on which shape I need.
Hi there. While it doesn’t really stand up to the rules, nutritional yeast is often used like Parmesan. Regarding pasta, we consider it minimally processed and gets a pass as long as it is whole grain or for the gluten free among us, give a bean, lentil , or brown rice pasta a try.
Who doesn’t love a bowl full of pasta right, it’s just so comforting on all levels! I lovelovelove that you added some sneaky cauliflower in here for some veggie goodness!
My husband swore he hated cauliflower until he tried it roasted. Now he sneaks into the kitchen as I’m pulling it from the oven to “taste” it. We haven’t tried it over pasta – what a good idea.
This looks delicious but I rarely have heavy cream on hand because it always goes bad since i only ever use a tiny amount. Do you think I could get a similar result with either 2% milk or almond milk since I usually keep those around? I’m excited to try this recipe!
Hi Jessica. As a general rule, I’ve had better luck when subbing real coconut milk/cream for heavy cream as the consistency is similar.
This would be such an easy weeknight meal– looks delicious, too. Roasted cauliflower really is the best. For anyone who thinks they don’t like cauliflower– try it roasted! Love the addition of the walnuts for a little boost of omega 3s and protein.
Agreed – we’ll definitely try it. We’ve been oven-roasting broccoli lately too with delicious results.