Creamy Cauliflower Pasta with Kale and Chickpeas
Roasted cauliflower puréed with kale and garlic, then tossed with pasta and chickpeas for delicious, healthy meal.
- Prep Time: 5 mins
- Cook Time: 40 mins
- Total Time: 45 mins
- Yield: 8 servings 1x
- Category: main
- Method: roasting + stove top
- Cuisine: Italian
Ingredients
Scale
- 1 head of cauliflower, florets chopped (about 4 to 5 cups chopped cauliflower)
- 4 tbsp extra virgin olive oil, divided
- 3 cloves garlic
- 1 cup coconut cream ,(see notes) divided
- 2 cups kale
- salt and peper to taste
- 1 14 oz can of chickpeas, drained and rinsed
- 1 lb whole wheat elbow macaroni or other short pasta
- optional cheese at pass at the table for topping. Skip this or use nondairy cheese to make this a vegan dish.
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Toss the cauliflower florets with 2 tablespoons of the olive oil along with a bit of salt. Roast the cauliflower the cauliflower for about 25 minutes. The cauliflower is ready when it is starting to get tender and can be easily pierced with a fork. When done, remove the cauliflower from oven and set aside to cool briefly.
- Begin boiling water to cook the pasta, and cook according to package instructions.
- Make the creamy cauliflower sauce as the pasta cooks. Add the garlic to a food processor and pulse the blade to mince the garlic. Add the roasted cauliflower and 3/4 cup of the coconut cream, and purée. Add the kale and purée to incorporate the kale into the sauce.
- When the pasta is cooked to your liking, reserve 1/4 cup of the pasta cooking water, then drain the pasta. Toss the pasta immediately with the creamy cauliflower sauce along with the reserved pasta water and the remaining 1/4 cup of coconut cream. Plate the pasta, and pass the cheese at the table if you like. Enjoy!
Notes
- We prepared this as a vegan dish, using coconut cream we had on hand. If you like, you could use milk or heavy cream instead of the coconut cream. I’ve included an Amazon affiliate link to a coconut cream product that looks similar to what I used, although I used a different brand.
- 3 cloves garlic does create a strong garlic flavor. Drop to 2 if you want a more moderate garlic taste.
Find it online: https://cookingchatfood.com/creamy-cauliflower-pasta/
