This creamy cauliflower pasta sauce is silky smooth and goes great topped with salty capers, fresh chives, sea salt flakes and cracked black pepper. It’s an easy recipe that uses minimal ingredients. Leftover sauce? Try it with grilled chicken breast or as a delicious creamy dip— think vegan “cheese”. It’s very versatile!

Dairy-Free • Gluten-Free • Nut-Free • Vegan • Vegetarian

Cauliflower pasta sauce recipe with spaghetti

Jump to:

Everything you’ll need
Step-by-step instructions
- How to store and freeze leftovers
- How to use up leftovers
More recipes to try

Everything you’ll need

Nothing fancy! This recipe uses kitchen staples, making it a quick and easy meal with the option to serve it however you’d like (or what you have available on-hand) e.g. pasta/noodles, grilled chicken, or served as a dip.

Ingredients:

Cauliflower
Onion
Garlic cloves
Lemon
Salt
Extra-virgin olive oil (high quality olive oil goes well with the recipe and boosts flavour.
Vegetable stock or reserved pasta water
What you’re serving it with: pasta (as pictured in this recipe), grilled chicken, or if using as a dip— your choice of crackers, chips, veggies, etc.
Optional toppings: capers and chives, or try other fresh herbs!

Gather up your ingredients and jump down to the full recipe below!

Equipment:

Blender (recommended for silky smooth consistency) or hand blender. Note: Use a blender with ventilation, such as a Vitamix. Ventilation is important when blending hot ingredients to avoid pressure build up and/or explosions. A hand blender would also work well for this recipe. [Disclaimer: As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.]

Step-by-step instructions

Step 1: Begin preparing the pasta by boiling salted water (if using— or whatever you are pairing it with e.g. grilled chicken).

Step 2: Chop the cauliflower into florets. Peel and chop the onion into quarters (discard the end roots).

Step 3: Steam the cauliflower, onion, and garlic cloves until very tender and soft.

Step 4: Add the tender cauliflower, onion, and garlic to a blender, along with the lemon juice (discard the seeds), salt, pasta water (or vegetable stock), and gradually add in the olive oil. Blend until silky smooth.

Step 5: Serve. Mix in the cooked pasta until evenly coated. Or, top with grilled chicken and vegetables. Or, serve with crackers, chips, and veggies!

How to store and freeze leftovers

Store any leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for 2-3 days.

The cauliflower pasta sauce freezes really well! Store in a freezer-friendly airtight container in the freezer for 2-3 months. When you want to re-heat, transfer it to the fridge the day before the slowly defrost. Then, re-heat on the stove top on low-medium heat. Add a splash of water (or pasta water) if needed. Note: Freeze in portion sizes to avoid defrosting too much and to help reduce food waste.

These are my favourite freezer-friendly airtight containers. [Disclaimer: As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.]

How to use up leftovers

If you don’t want to have the same recipe days in a row, try using this pasta sauce 3 different ways:

Spoon it over grilled chicken and vegetables.
Use it as a dipping sauce for crackers, chips, and/or raw veggies.
Spoon it over fries/chips as a vegan nacho sauce.

More recipes to try

Cauliflower Pasta Sauce

Molly Eardley

This creamy cauliflower pasta sauce is silky smooth and goes great topped with salty capers, fresh chives, sea salt flakes and cracked black pepper. It's an easy recipe that uses minimal ingredients.

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Prep Time 5

Cook Time 15

Total Time 20

Course Main Course

Cuisine American

Servings 2

Ingredients

¼ head of cauliflower
100 ml reserved pasta water (~½ cup) or vegetable stock
½ onion
1-2 garlic cloves
1 lemon (juice)
¼ tsp salt
1 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil

Toppings

capers optional
chives optional
sea salt flakes and cracked black pepper optional

Instructions

Begin preparing the pasta by boiling salted water (if using— or whatever you are pairing it with e.g. grilled chicken).
Chop the cauliflower into florets. Peel and chop the onion into quarters (discard the end roots).
Steam the cauliflower, onion, and garlic cloves until very tender and soft.
Add the tender cauliflower, onion, and garlic to a blender, along with the lemon juice (discard the seeds), salt, pasta water (or vegetable stock), and gradually add in the olive oil. Blend until silky smooth.
Serve. Mix in the cooked pasta until evenly coated. Or, top with grilled chicken and vegetables. Or, serve with crackers, chips, and veggies!

Notes

This recipe can be used for any type of pasta. Remember to save some of the pasta water for blending into the sauce as this helps the sauce stick to the pasta.

If you are serving this with chicken or as a dip— you can use vegetable stock instead of pasta water.

All toppings are optional, but go especially well with pasta or grilled chicken.

Keywords alfredo sauce, easy pasta sauce, easy recipe, healthy, vegan cheese, vegan recipe