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Veggie-Loaded Balsamic Pasta – an Easy Vegan Pasta Recipe

Today’s vegan balsamic pasta is one of the simplest yet one of the most flavorful pasta dishes I’ve ever made. Loaded with roasted vegetables and a simple balsamic vinegar-based sauce, this pasta recipe has become one of our family’s favorite healthy vegan pasta recipes. Give it a try, and you’ll see why!

I’ve been wanting to share more recipes here on the blog, but lately I’ve been struggling to find time (and often inspiration) for developing new recipes. When you’ve got an active 7 month-old baby on your hands, you often resort to quick, tried-and-true recipes when making dinner.

Easy vegan Balsamic Pasta recipe the whole family will love

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This recipe was born accidentally when I was trying to cook up a lot of veggies in the fridge one day, but didn’t want to fuss with making a complicated pasta sauce.

I’m rarely in the mood for pasta with the classic red tomato sauce, and other pasta sauces are usually quite involved. Voila – this delicious and wholesome vegan pasta recipe was born!

Recently I wondered why I haven’t shared my balsamic pasta recipe here yet because honestly, it’s soooo delicious and quite easy to make! Even when a tiny 7 month-old human demands your attention all the time 🙂

The simple balsamic dressing does wonders for this vegan pasta dish, creating a flavor that’s bright enough to excite your palate, yet not too overbearing that it would cover the flavors of all the delicious veggies in this recipe.

Easy vegan pasta recipe - Italian-inspired vegan Balsamic Pasta

How do I make vegan balsamic pasta sauce?

To make balsamic pasta sauce, you’ll need to mix balsamic vinegar, Dijon mustard and maple syrup in a small bowl. Whisk the mixture until everything is dissolved.

Start pouring olive oil slowly into the vinegar mixture while you continue whisking it. Once the sauce looks homogeneous, stir in nutritional yeast.

Pour in about a half cup of water that the pasta was cooking in. Just before adding the sauce to the pasta and vegetables, whisk it again a few more times.

For ingredient amounts, see recipe card below.

Note on olive oil: If you’ve followed my blog for a while, you know that I mostly post oil-free recipes here.

In the beginning of my plant-based/vegan journey I steered clear of oil for the most part, following health recommendations of various plant-based diet masterminds. Since then my ways have changed – not that I don’t care about my health anymore 🙂 but I’m just not as rigid.

It’s entirely possible that this recipe would still work if you omit the oil and replace it with extra pasta water, but I haven’t tried that.

How do I cook the vegetables for balsamic pasta?

My favorite way to cook all the veggies is by roasting them in the oven. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees, line a baking sheet with parchment paper, and spread sliced vegetables like bell peppers, mushrooms, shallots, zucchini, carrots, etc.

Make sure not to crowd the baking sheet, or the veggies will steam instead of roasting. If you have too much veggies, use two sheets.

Roast the vegetables for 15 minutes, stir, and roast for about 10 minutes more, or until the desired level of doneness is achieved. If some veggie pieces start looking charred, take them off the tray, and continue roasting the rest.

You can also cook the veggies in a wok. The classic wok shape allows plenty of room for the veggies to steam in their own moisture, plus mixing in the pasta and the sauce is easy. If you have a large heavy-bottomed pan, things will work out just as well.

What vegetables are used in vegan balsamic pasta?

I use a pretty standard variety of vegetables in this Balsamic Pasta: broccoli, bell peppers, mushrooms, shallots, zucchini, carrots, peas. I also like adding olives (black or kalamata) and artichoke hearts for extra zing.

It’s not mandatory to use all of these veggies – you can totally use your own judgement and preferences, omitting or adding a few things.

Italian-inspired vegan Balsamic Pasta recipe - perfect for when you're not in the mood for a tomato-based sauce but still want lots of flavor

I’ve used arugula and broccolini instead of broccoli (my husband’s preferred substitution), skipped sundried tomatoes, olives or artichokes if I didn’t have any.

You can also skip the vegan sausage if you’re trying to eat less processed food.

Can this balsamic pasta be made gluten free?

Absolutely! For gluten-free substitutions, use gluten-free pasta and omit the Field Roast Italian vegan sausage. If sausage is a must, try adding sliced Beyond Meat Hot Italian sausages that happen to be gluten-free.

The balsamic sauce ingredients are naturally gluten-free.

Can I serve this vegan balsamic pasta cold?

Yes! This Balsamic Pasta can be served cold as a yummy pasta salad! Make it as is with penne pasta, or use a different pasta shape (bow ties, elbows, etc.) and wow everyone at your next summertime gathering.

Yield: 4 servings

Easy Vegan Balsamic Pasta Recipe

A delicious vegan balsamic pasta that can be served hot or cold. The easy balsamic sauce brightens up the flavors of the veggies, making it a crowd favorite. For gluten free option, use gluten free pasta and omit vegan sausage.

Vegan pasta recipe with balsamic sauce and vegetables

A delicious vegan balsamic pasta that can be served hot or cold. The easy balsamic sauce brightens up the flavors of the veggies, making it a crowd favorite. For gluten free option, use gluten free pasta and omit vegan sausage.

Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 30 minutes
Total Time 50 minutes

Ingredients

  • 1/2 box pasta*
  • 1 vegan sausage** (my favorite is Field Roast Italian, halved lengthwise and sliced into 1/4" thick half-moons
  • Olive oil OR veggie broth/water, as needed to saute the veggies

Vegetables:

  • 1 large head broccoli, divided into florets
  • 1 shallot, halved and sliced
  • 2 medium carrots, julienned or sliced into 1/4" thick rounds
  • 1 red or orange bell pepper, chopped into 1/4" thick sticks
  • 5-6 crimini mushrooms, quartered
  • 1 zucchini, halved lengthwise and sliced into 1/4" thick half-moons
  • 2 Tbsp chopped parsley
  • Avocado or olive oil, as needed

Balsamic Sauce:

  • 1/3 cup balsamic vinegar
  • 3 Tbsp olive oil
  • 1 tsp Dijon mustard
  • 1 tsp maple syrup
  • 1 Tbsp nutritional yeast
  • 1/2 cup reserved pasta water (save some before draining the pasta)

Instructions

    1. Preheat the oven to 425°F. Lightly grease a large baking sheet.
      Cook pasta according to the package directions. Drain, reserving 1/2 cup of pasta water.
    2. Arrange sliced shallots, carrots, and pepper on the baking sheet, toss with 1-2 tsp avocado oil, salt and pepper. Roast 8 minutes.
    3. Add broccoli florets, mushrooms and zucchini to the same baking sheet. Toss with the rest of the vegetables, and roast about 10 min more.
    4. While the vegetables are roasting, preheat a large skillet over medium and lightly brown sliced Field Roast sausage (if using).
    5. Once the vegetables are roasted and the sausage has been browned, toss them with the cooked pasta, chopped parsley and balsamic sauce (recipe follows).

To Make the Balsamic Sauce:

    1. In a medium bowl, whisk together balsamic vinegar, mustard and maple syrup. Slowly pour in olive oil while whisking the mixture with a fork or a small whisk until the mixture becomes homogeneous, about a minute. Stir in nutritional yeast.
    2. Just before adding the sauce to the pasta, whisk one more time.

Notes

*Use penne, rotini, bow ties, etc.

**Omit Field Roast vegan sausage and use gluten-free pasta to make this recipe gluten-free.

Nutrition Information:

Yield:

4

Serving Size:

1 bowl

Amount Per Serving: Calories: 555Total Fat: 35gSaturated Fat: 7gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 26gCholesterol: 38mgCarbohydrates: 44gFiber: 12gSugar: 15gProtein: 21g

Please note that the provided nutritional information data is approximate.

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Question for you: What’s your favorite vegan pasta recipe? Bonus points if it’s vegan, of course 🙂

Veggie-loaded balsamic pasta recipe - an easy vegan pasta recipe with gluten-free option

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author avatar
Alina Zavatsky - Vegan Runner Eats
Alina first made a switch to a vegan diet in 2013 to optimize her athletic performance as a marathon runner. Eventually she embraced veganism as a way to be kinder to fellow living beings and the environment. Alina hopes that this blog helps its readers on their path to becoming vegan and making this world a better place.

Suze

Sunday 3rd of June 2018

Hi Alina! Made this tonight - it's delicious!! A little more messing around with put in/take out, but the end result was worth it. I'd probably recommend cutting up all the veggies in the a.m. for the working person. That would save a lot of time when it comes to prep. Flavors were great, wouldn't change a thing!

Suze

Tuesday 5th of June 2018

WORTH MENTIONING: I had the leftovers cold the next day for lunch. YUM!

Alina Zavatsky - Vegan Runner Eats

Monday 4th of June 2018

So glad to hear you liked this pasta, Suze! Thank you for your feedback!

Kimberly

Wednesday 23rd of May 2018

My daughter loves pasta. Definitely gonna give this one a try soon, hope it will be tasty for her. Thanks for the recipe.

Alina Zavatsky - Vegan Runner Eats

Wednesday 23rd of May 2018

Awesome, Kimberly, let me know how it goes!

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