Easy Pasta Primavera With Sauteed Vegetables

This easy, fresh, healthy Pasta Primavera is the perfect family meal! Whether you're trying to use up ingredients, make a last minute meal, or keep it simple yet delicious, let the veggies do the work and try this Vegan Italian Dish!

Course Main Dish, Pasta

Cuisine Gluten-Free, Italian, Vegan

Keyword pasta primavera recipe, pasta with vegetables, vegan pasta recipe, veggie pasta

Prep Time 10

Cook Time 20

Total Time 30

Servings servings

Calories 342kcal

Author Anjali Lalani

Ingredients

10 oz penne pasta , see notes below
1 tbsp vegan butter , or additional olive oil
olive oil
2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
10-15 leaves fresh basil , chopped
1 tbsp fresh lemon juice
2/3 cup vegan parmesan cheese , optional
pine nuts , optional
salt
freshly ground black pepper

Vegetables:

4 large vine-ripe tomatoes , diced
3 cloves garlic , minced
1 small onion , diced
1 yellow squash , diced
8 spheres asparagus , stems removed and cut into 4ths
1 small bunch broccoli , cut into small florets
3 bell peppers , diced (varying assortment of red, green, yellow, or orange)

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

In a large pot, boil some water with some salt and olive oil. Cook the pasta al dente. Once done, drain the pasta, rinse with cold water to stop additional cooking, and toss with a little olive oil to avoid sticky pasta.

To Cook The Vegetables:

In a large non-stick pan, add 1 tbsp olive oil and 1 tbsp vegan butter and heat on medium-high heat.
Add the garlic and fry for a few seconds until fragrant.
Add all the other chopped and diced vegetables except for the tomatoes. Make sure there is enough oil and/or butter to coat all the vegetables. If needed, add more olive oil.
Sprinkle some salt and pepper, stir frequently and pan grill the vegetables on medium-high heat until all the water has evaporated and the veggies are slightly grilled. Once done, they will be cooked, yet slightly firm (do not overcook the vegetables otherwise they will be soft and mushy). See notes below.
Once the vegetables are done, turn the heat down to medum. Add the tomatoes and cook for a few more minutes, stirring freqently.

To Prepare the Pasta:

Add the cooked pasta to the veggies.
Add the balsamic vinegar, lemon juice, basil, and season to taste with salt and freshly ground black pepper.
Toss the pasta with vegan parmesan cheese and some pine nuts (if using).
Serve hot with a side of garlic bread!

Notes

Pasta Options -

I recommend Penne shaped pasta for this recipe, but other shapes will work fine.
Gluten-Free or Healthier Pasta Options - use Explore Cuisine red/green lentil pasta, Brown Rice or Quinoa pasta from Tinkyada or Trader Joes, Ancient Harvest lentil pasta, or NOW Foods quinoa penne.

To Add Protein - Use one of the gluten-free pasta options listed above to add protein to this dish. The lentil based pastas have a high amount of protein.

What Vegetables To Use - The flavor of this dish comes mainly from the cooked vegetables themselves. Feel free to leave out veggies based on what you have in your fridge, but I'd highly recommend adding garlic, onions, an assortment of bell peppers at the least.

Cooking The Vegetables - The key to cooking the perfectly grilled vegetables for this dish is to make sure the heat is on medium-high so that the water released while cooking evaporates quickly and the vegetables grill and cook, but are still firm when done.

Nutrition