This Roasted Cauliflower Pasta is a truly special, delicious, and flavor-packed recipe. Cauliflower is roasted alongside onions, garlic, and breadcrumbs until everything is nice and crispy. Goodness – the breadcrumbs!! They absorb all that delicious flavor and olive oil as it roasts. The roasted cauliflower with breadcrumbs alone is a great side dish. But to make it a whole meal, it’s all tossed with cooked pasta, along with lemon juice, capers, and parsley. You’re going to love this easy but incredibly special recipe (one that just happens to be vegan) that’s sure to wow anyone!
I think the thing that surprised me most about this absolutely decadent tasting recipe is the fact that it has NO cheese. Which is SO unlike me when it comes to pasta. In fact, this roasted cauliflower pasta is completely vegan! Not to mention it’s inexpensive to make.
The crispy roasted breadcrumbs kind of take the place of what normally would be a sprinkling of parmesan. They add a salty, umami-esque flavor, especially since they are roasted alongside the onions and garlic. They absorb all those flavors, as well as turn a gorgeous golden-brown color and crisp to perfection from soaking up some of the onion and garlic infused olive oil as it roasts. Of course, you can add parmesan if you want to! You know I’m all about making recipes whatever you want them to be.
Let’s turn a head of cauliflower into something gorgeous and delicious, shall we? Roasted cauliflower pasta, here we go!
Ingredients and Substitutions
- Cauliflower Florets – I used fresh, but frozen will likely work without any special accommodations. And honestly, you can use a variety of different veggies here with the same method. Broccoli is the obvious substitution (or a mix!), but asparagus, cubed butternut squash, Brussels sprouts, or any other veggie that roasts well will work here.
- Sweet onion – this will give a nice sweet flavor and crisp up and brown beautifully, but a white or yellow onion will also work.
- Garlic
- Panko breadcrumbs – regular will work in a pinch but panko are preferred.
- Pasta – any medium or long noodle-shaped kind you want; I used Campanelle.
- Capers – substitute with chopped green olives if you like.
- Lemon juice
- Fresh parsley – leave it out if you don’t have any or use basil instead.
- Pantry staples: Extra-virgin olive oil, kosher salt, black pepper, and (optionally) crushed red pepper.
How to make Roasted Cauliflower Pasta
First, you’ll roast the cauliflower, along with the onions and garlic, tossed with olive oil, salt, and pepper (and crushed red pepper if you like some spice!). Halfway through the roasting, you’ll sprinkle it with breadcrumbs and return to the oven until it’s all done and the breadcrumbs are nice and crispy.
Toss cooked pasta with lemon juice, capers, parsley, olive oil, and a little bit of the pasta cooking water. When the cauliflower is done roasting, add all of it to the bowl with the pasta and mix everything together. That’s it!
Please scroll to the bottom of the post for the full recipe including ingredient amounts and detailed instructions.
Tips and Tricks
- Do NOT overcrowd the sheet pan. A crowded sheet pan may yield vegetables that aren’t able to release their steam as effectively, causing them to be soggy. I mean, it won’t be bad if you do this, but if you want your onions to be gorgeously browned and crispy, the cauliflower to roast well without overcooking, and the breadcrumbs to be as crispy as possible, make sure you leave a little space between everything. Instead, use two sheet pans if you have a surplus of veggies or save some of the prepped veggies for something else!
- Leftovers are delicious, but the breadcrumbs won’t be crispy anymore. Just keep that in mind if you’re planning on leftovers!
- Play around with different veggies! This roasted cauliflower pasta recipe will work with basically any veggie that roasts well. Personally, I can’t wait to try it with butternut squash in the fall and asparagus in the spring.
Can I make this Roasted Cauliflower Pasta gluten-free?
Absolutely! Use a gluten-free pasta (I love Banza chickpea pasta, especially because this will also add protein), and gluten-free breadcrumbs. As an alternative to breadcrumbs, you can use parmesan cheese, which will also get nice and crispy when roasted with the veggies.
How can I prep the cauliflower without making a huge mess?
This is my favorite way to prep cauliflower and broccoli. And feel free to buy cauliflower florets already cut – fresh or frozen should both work for this! Do keep in mind pre-cut veggies are often varied in size, which may mean they won’t roast as evenly. I prefer prepping myself for this reason.
Other easy cauliflower recipes
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Roasted Cauliflower Pasta with Crispy Onions and Breadcrumbs
Equipment
Ingredients
For the roasted cauliflower
- 4 cups cauliflower florets from about 1 medium head, cut into smallish pieces
- 1 medium sweet onion quartered and thinly sliced
- 2-4 cloves garlic roughly chopped or slivered, see notes
- 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil more if needed
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- crushed red pepper flakes optional, to taste for personal preference
- 1 cup Panko breadcrumbs
For the pasta
- 8 oz. dry pasta any kind you like, I used Campanelle
- kosher salt
- 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 tablespoon capers
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice from about 1 large lemon
- 2 tabespoons chopped fresh parsley plus more for garnish
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. On a rimmed baking sheet, add the 4 cups cauliflower florets, sliced 1 medium sweet onion, chopped 2-4 cloves garlic, 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, 1 teaspoon kosher salt, ¼ teaspoon black pepper, and crushed red pepper flakes, if using. Toss together to coat everything well (use a bit more olive oil if it seems dry or to personal preference), spread out evenly, and roast for about 20 minutes, or until veggies start to brown and soften (see notes).
- Remove the baking sheet from the oven and toss veggies to flip around and redistribute, spread out evenly on the pan. Sprinkle the top with the 1 cup Panko breadcrumbs and place back into the oven, roasting for another 10 minutes or so, or until breadcrumbs are golden and veggies have browned and softened.
- While cauliflower is roasting, cook the 8 oz. dry pasta until al dente according to package directions in heavily salted water (I usually use about 2 tablespoons of kosher salt when I cook dry pasta).
- Use a slotted spoon or tongs to transfer the cooked pasta directly into a large mixing bowl along with 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, 1 tablespoon capers, 2 tablespoons lemon juice, and 2 tabespoons chopped fresh parsley. If it all seems a bit dry, you can add a couple of tablespoons of the pasta cooking water (not too much – you don't want it to be too watery so the breadcrumbs don't get soggy!).
- Once cauliflower is done roasting, remove from the oven and toss with the pasta mixture. Taste and adjust seasoning if necessary. Serve garnished with more parsley and red pepper flakes, a drizzle of olive oil, and fresh cracked black pepper, if desired.
Notes
- Be sure not to cut the garlic into too small pieces. Mincing the garlic in this case, for example, may cause the garlic pieces to burn while roasting, which will impart a bitter taste into the whole dish. Better to chop the garlic roughly or sliver the cloves so they hold up when roasting.
- Cutting the cauliflower into florets is easy, and here’s a tutorial on how to cut cauliflower into florets without making a huge mess (and broccoli too!). I like to prep it as soon as I buy it and put it into a container so it’s all cut, washed, and ready to go when I want to cook. To save time, you can buy pre-cut cauliflower florets, but do be careful with these as they won’t be as uniform in size and you may need cut some down so they all roast evenly, and/or adjust the cooking time to allow for larger sized pieces.
- Do not crowd the baking sheet. Depending on how crowded the baking sheet is (if you use a larger head of cauliflower and a larger onion, for example), the cauliflower may not cook as well (it will steam if too close together) and take much longer, and the onions won’t get as crispy and browned. I recommend using two baking sheets if you seem to have a surplus of veggies rather than crowding one.
- To make this gluten-free, use a gluten-free pasta and gluten-free breadcrumbs. Another alternative to breadcrumbs is parmesan cheese, which will get crispy as it bakes in the oven.
- To make this higher in protein, I recommend a chickpea pasta such as Banza. You could also add canned chickpeas to this (I recommend draining, rinsing, and adding to the boiling water when you add the pasta. Alternatively, you can roast the chickpeas in the oven for a crunchier version!), small fresh mozzarella balls, or serve alongside chicken or shrimp.
- I recommend roasting the veggies directly on the baking sheet rather than lining with parchment paper, as the onions and breadcrumbs will crisp up better with direct contact with the metal. But if you want easier clean-up, feel free to use parchment paper!
Nutrition
Nutrition Information Disclaimer
The provided nutrition information is my best estimate and reflects one serving of the recipe (total servings indicated at top of recipe card). It does not include any added sodium from seasoning to taste, any optional ingredients, and it does not take brands into account. I use an automatic API to calculate this information. Feel free to calculate it yourself using one of these tools:
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