Creamy HIDDEN VEGGIE PASTA Recipe! Delicious, Healthy, Vegetable-Packed Weeknight Dinner Pasta!

heavy cream

🥗Healthier: Greek yogurt

💰Cheaper: milk + cornstarch

Greek yogurt reduces calories while maintaining creaminess

parmesan cheese

🥗Healthier: nutritional yeast

💰Cheaper: grated pecorino

Nutritional yeast is dairy-free and lower in calories.

olive oil

🥗Healthier: avocado oil

💰Cheaper: sunflower oil

Avocado oil is healthier while sunflower oil is often less expensive.

pasta

🥗Healthier: whole wheat pasta

💰Cheaper: pasta made from lentils

Whole wheat pasta offers more fiber, while lentil pasta is protein-rich.

Cut the vegetables (carrots, bell pepper, zucchini, onion, garlic) into uniform sizes for even cooking.

Reserve about 1 cup of starchy pasta water before draining the pasta.

Cook the pasta according to package instructions, but stop 1 minute shy of al dente.

Heat a pan over medium heat and add extra-virgin olive oil.

Add the chopped vegetables to the pan and season generously with kosher salt, black pepper, and red pepper flakes.

Cook the vegetables for about 10-12 minutes until they are cooked down and softened.

Blend the cooked vegetables in a blender or food processor until smooth, adding a tablespoon of pasta water if needed to help blend.

Return the blended vegetable sauce back to the pan and add a splash of reserved pasta water to help combine.

Turn the heat to medium-high and add the undercooked pasta to the sauce, stirring to combine.

Add grated Parmesan cheese to the pasta and sauce, adjusting the amount to taste, and toss everything together for about 1 minute, adding more pasta water if the sauce is too thick.

Cooking Techniques

Equipment Needed

Spice Level:

Dietary

Allergens