Pink Beet Pasta Recipe

Pink Beet Pasta Recipe – made with vegan ingredients, fusilli with creamy beet and cashew sauce, topped with non dairy cheese. Light, but filling, healthy and delicious. The pasta sauce is the perfect shade of pink. Non vegan option available.

There are a couple of different pasta sauces called “pink sauce” and today I’m sharing with you how I make it.The nice purply – pink color in this dish comes from the beets.

1. Some people call “pink pasta sauce” a sauce made with tomatoes, seasoning, cream cheese and milk (or heavy cream). The sauce has a light orange-pink color and it is called pink sauce for pasta.
2. The second option is the one I’m sharing with you today. The perfect pink color is achieved by adding beets to the sauce.

How to make Pink Pasta With Beets?

Ingredients: 

• Pasta of your choice – I used fusilli, but penne or angel hair will be a good option, too.
• Beets – I love the prepackaged cooked and peeled beets for a “mess free” experience
• Cashews
• Garlic
• Onion
• Olive oil
• Salt and pepper to taste
• Dried oregano and basil
• Vegan Parmesan Cheese or Nutritional Yeast
• Remember to reserve some pasta water for the sauce, but if you forget, use some filtered water

Directions:

1. Cook pasta in salted water following the directions on the package.
2. In the meat time heat a pan over medium heat on the stove top.
3. Add olive oil. Cook the onion for 2 minutes, stirring frequently. Add the garlic and cook for 30 seconds. Remove from heat to prevent burning.
4. In a powerful blender (food processor) place the cooked onion and garlic, cashews, beets, seasoning and 1/2 cup pasta water. Blend until smooth. If the sauce is too thick, add more pasta water and blend again.
5. Place the cooked (drained) pasta in a bowl.
6. Add the sauce to the bowl and stir to coat in it.
7. Top with cheese and serve.

Recipe Tips:

1. Can this sauce be made “non vegan”? The answer is yes. Instead of cashews, you can add heavy whipping cream to the sauce – 1/2 cup heavy cream for 2/3 cup of cashews.
2. Use a powerful blender or food processor for the sauce. In my cooking experience and with the equipment I have, I’ve noticed that blenders work better, when it comes to blending cashews than food processors.
3. Why soak the cashews before using in this sauce and other vegan recipes? By soaking them they soften and turn into a smooth and creamy mixture, when blended. Soaking also boosts nutrition, since it helps to remove Phytic acid, allowing our bodies to get more nutrients from the nuts. It also makes them easier to digest.
4. This pasta recipe is quick and very simple. Feel free to add other veggies like mushrooms, zucchini or eggplant. If you are making the non vegan version, add some protein in the form of shrimp or chicken. Adding some crunchy tofu is also a great idea.
5. Toppings: Nutritional yeast, chopped nuts, hot pepper flakes, fresh herbs (parsley, thyme, basil), Vegan Parmesan Cheese, Bacon bits (for the non Vegan option).

More Pasta Recipes:

• Baked Feta Pasta
• Easy Tuna Pasta Recipe
• Balsamic Mushroom Bacon Pasta Sauce

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5 from 1 vote

Pink Pasta Recipe

Pink Beet Pasta Recipe – made with vegan ingredients, fusilli with creamy beet and cashew sauce, topped with non dairy cheese. Light, but filling, healthy and delicious. The pasta sauce is the perfect shade of pink. Non vegan option available.

Prep: 5 minutes mins

Cook: 10 minutes mins

Servings: 2

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Ingredients 

1x2x3x

• ▢ 4 oz dry pasta
• ▢ 2/3 cup cashews, soaked overnight, then drained and rinsed
• ▢ 1 clove garlic, pressed
• ▢ 1 small onion, chopped
• ▢ 2 tbsp olive oil
• ▢ 1/3 cup vegan Parmesan Cheese
• ▢ 1/2 tsp salt, + more for cooking the pasta
• ▢ 1/4 tsp black pepper
• ▢ 1/4 tsp dried oregano
• ▢ 1/2 tsp dried basil
• ▢ Reserve 1 cup pasta water to thin the sauce, you may not need to use it all
• ▢ Fresh herbs of your choice for garnishing

US Customary – Metric

Instructions 

• Cook pasta in salted water following the directions on the package.
• In the meat time heat a pan over medium heat on the stove top.
• Add olive oil. Cook the onion for 2 minutes, stirring frequently. Add the garlic and cook for 30 seconds. Remove from heat to prevent burning.
• In a blender (food processor) place the cooked onion and garlic, cashews, beets, seasoning and 1/2 cup pasta water. Blend until smooth. If the sauce is too thick, add more pasta water and blend again.
• Place the cooked (drained) pasta in a bowl.
• Add the sauce to the bowl and stir to coat in it.
• Top with cheese. Serve.

Nutrition

Calories: 660kcal, Carbohydrates: 68g, Protein: 23g, Fat: 35g, Saturated Fat: 6g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 5g, Monounsaturated Fat: 21g, Cholesterol: 3mg, Sodium: 785mg, Potassium: 610mg, Fiber: 4g, Sugar: 7g, Vitamin A: 34IU, Vitamin C: 5mg, Calcium: 188mg, Iron: 5mg

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

Additional Info

Course: dinner

Cuisine: American

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