Easy Chickpea Pasta with Oil-Free Vegan Basil Pesto
This 1-pot pasta recipe combines gluten-free chickpea pasta with creamy vegan green spinach pesto. Get your greens with broccolini, a sweet, tender relative of broccoli. This oil-free, plant-based recipe is perfect for a quick weeknight dinner.
One-Pot Pasta: The Perfect Weeknight Vegan Dinner
Lately, I’ve been obsessed with 1-pot pasta. It’s become my go-to vegan dinner when I don’t want to spend the time (or energy) dirtying up a bunch of pans and waiting for things to brown. It’s also a great excuse to clean out the fridge and freezer, using up whatever veggies I might have lying around.
The technique for one-pot plant-based pasta is simple:
- Bring a medium pot of water to a boil
- Cook the pasta halfway (usually about 4 minutes)
- Add the veggies to the pasta. Cook for 3-4 more minutes, until veggies are tender and pasta is “al dente”
- Drain the pasta and veggies (saving 1 cup of the pasta water)
- Heat the pasta water with sauce (in this case, a creamy pesto)
- Add pasta and veggies back to the pot, tossing with the sauce
- Cook until hot, 1-2 minutes.
- Voila! Dinner is done!
I use this technique with all kinds of sauces, pastas, and veggies. It’s the same technique I use for 1-pot Pumpkin Sage Pasta with Chickpea Gemelli Noodles. I also use it to make 10-Minute Hummus Pasta. I shared this video on Instagram to show you how easy it is:
Why Casarecce Pasta?
Casarecce translates from the Italian word for “homemade”. Traditionally from Sicily, casarecce it is made when small squares of pasta dough are curled around a thin rod called a ferro. This pasta is often served with tomato-based sauces that are typically found in Southern Italy. However, it is the perfect shape for any creamy sauce. The spiral shape has lots of nooks and crannies. In turn, it’s perfect for holding a creamy sauce like an oil-free basil pesto.
How do you pronounce “Casarecce”?
Casarecce is pronounced “ka-sa-RAY-cheh”. If you speak Spanish, think of how you would say “casa”. The double “c” in Italian is pronounced as “ch”. I try to remember this pronunciation as “House of Ray Chay”….casa-RAY-cheh.
What is Broccolini?
Broccolini is a hybrid vegetable: a cross between American broccoli and Chinese broccoli. While it looks like it’s been around a while, it was first created in 1993. It is more tender than regular broccoli. Plus, you can eat the thin, crisp stems. If you can’t find broccolini, you can use regular broccoli or Chinese broccoli.
Satisfying, Oil-Free Gluten-Free Vegan Pasta
You’ll love this pasta dish! It is:
- Hearty and satisfying
- Full of beautiful green color
- Has bright summer flavor
- Rich and creamy
- An easy weeknight dinner
- Gluten-free, Oil-Free, Plant-Based, Vegan
Chef Katie’s Oil-Free, Plant-Based Cooking Tips:
No Chickpea Pasta? Gluten-Free Chickpea pasta is a healthy way to add extra plant-based protein to your meal. However, you can use any whole grain pasta for this recipe. Whole wheat pasta, brown rice, and lentil pasta all work well.
Why Casarecce Pasta?
Vegan Cashew Sauce? Cashews add rich, satisfying flavor to the creamy pasta sauce. Instead of using refined oil, cashews are a whole foods way to add healthy fats, fiber, and other nutrition. Use them to replace butter and cream as an easy dairy-free substitution.
Pasta Water: One chef’s trick for creating a rich, creamy sauce is to use some of the water from cooking the pasta. Before draining your cooked pasta, reserve some of the water. Use this in your sauce. Use this trick any time you make pasta.
Extra Sauce: Make extra Oil-Free Basil Pesto and freeze extras. You can use for future pasta dinners, layer with noodles for vegan lasagna, or pour over roasted vegetables like broccoli, cauliflower, and baked potatoes.
No Broccolini? If you can’t find broccolini, you can use regular broccoli or Chinese broccoli. You need about 2 cups chopped for this recipe (about 1 big head of broccoli).
Oil-Free Cooking: I’m on a mission to get rid of empty calories, like those found in refined oils. This recipe uses cashews to add rich creamy flavor, instead of olive oil or other refined oils.
Broccolini looks like miniature broccoli. You can eat the sweet, tender stalks 
Cook the pasta and broccolini in the same pot 
Cook the pasta and broccolini until al dente, 
Save some of the pasta water before draining the pasta 
A quick sauce comes together with cashews, baby spinach, and fresh basil 
Make extras of the green basil sauce to use over veggies, potatoes, or with future pasta meals 
This green pasta comes together in 1-pot for a quick, easy dinner 
1-pot Green Chickpea Pasta with Broccolini and Oil-Free Basil Pesto – Vegan Plant-Based Dinner Recipe from Plants-Rule 
1-pot Green Chickpea Pasta with Broccolini and Oil-Free Basil Pesto – Vegan Plant-Based Dinner Recipe from Plants-Rule
Watch a Cool Video about Harvesting Broccolini:
1-pot Green Chickpea Pasta with Broccolini and Oil-Free Vegan Basil Pesto
- Easy
- Ready in: 10 minutes
- Servings: 2
- Yield: about 4 cups
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1-pot Green Chickpea Pasta with Broccolini and Oil-Free Vegan Basil Pesto
Ingredients
- ¼ cup cashews soaked
- 4 cups 5 ounces fresh baby spinach
- 1/2 cup fresh basil stems removed
- 1 clove garlic
- 2 teaspoons lemon juice
- Salt and pepper to taste
- ½ box 2 servings Casarecce chickpea pasta
- 1 bunch Broccolini trimmed and cut into bite-sized pieces
Instructions
- To make the 1-pot Green Chickpea Pasta with Broccolini and Spinach Pesto: Bring a large pot of water to boil over high heat. While this is coming to a boil, measure all of the ingredients for your oil-free basil pesto.
- For the Oil-Free Basil Pesto: In a blender, combine cashews, baby spinach, fresh basil, garlic, lemon, salt, and pepper. Add ½ cup of water. Puree until smooth, scraping down the sides of the blender as needed. This may take 1-2 minutes to get the cashews smooth. Leave the sauce in the blender.
- When the pot of water is boiling, add the chickpea pasta noodles. Stir. Return to a boil. Cook for 4 minutes. Add the broccolini and cook 3 more minutes. The pasta should be “al dente”. Scoop out 2 cups of the pasta water. Then drain the pasta. Set aside.
- Return the pot to the stove. Add the sauce from the blender and 1 cup of the pasta cooking water. Bring to a simmer over medium heat. Add the cooked pasta and broccolini to the sauce. Season with salt and pepper. Cook until everything is hot, 1-2 minutes. Be careful not to overcook the pasta or it may fall apart. If you need more sauce, add more of the reserved pasta cooking water.
- Serve immediately. Enjoy!
Notes
Ready in: 10 minutes
Servings: 2
Yield: about 4 cups
Nutrition Facts
| Nutrition Facts | |
|---|---|
| Servings 2.0 | |
| Amount Per Serving | |
| calories 390 | |
| % Daily Value * | |
| Total Fat 10 g | 16 % |
| Saturated Fat 1 g | 7 % |
| Monounsaturated Fat 4 g | |
| Polyunsaturated Fat 2 g | |
| Trans Fat 0 g | |
| Cholesterol 0 mg | 0 % |
| Sodium 218 mg | 9 % |
| Potassium 1395 mg | 40 % |
| Total Carbohydrate 53 g | 18 % |
| Dietary Fiber 14 g | 58 % |
| Sugars 5 g | |
| Protein 27 g | 55 % |
| Vitamin A | 145 % |
| Vitamin C | 105 % |
| Calcium | 23 % |
| Iron | 38 % |
| * The Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet, so your values may change depending on your calorie needs. The values here may not be 100% accurate because the recipes have not been professionally evaluated nor have they been evaluated by the U.S. FDA. | |
Shopping List
- Banza Chickpea Penne Pasta, 8 Ounce (Pack of 2)
- Dry Roasted Cashews Unsalted
- NOW Nutritional Yeast Flakes,10-Ounce
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Where is the recipe to make the cashew sauce? I see the ingredients but no amounts to use?
Sorry about that, Diane! The recipe has been fixed with the correct ingredient list
No ingredients list? Did I miss them? You are normally so detailed in your instructions, this seems uncharacteristic of your high standards. Help please!
Thank you
Sorry about that! Thank you for letting me know. The ingredients are now listed.