A homely recipe for vegan pasta bake without cheese. This creamy pasta bake is so easy to make - just chop and drop all the ingredients into one casserole dish and bake in the oven. You don't even need to pre-boil the pasta!
I really enjoy comforting casserole pasta dishes, like this mac 'n' cheese. The warm and homely feeling they give is unbeatable.
I also love experimenting with recipes, and this pasta bake came about from my curiosity. I wanted to see if I could bake pasta with enough liquid that it would come out tender, and it worked like a charm.
With this particular recipe, I can simply toss all the ingredients into one casserole dish, give it a good stir, pop it in the oven, and 50 minutes later, there's a satisfying meal ready for the entire family to enjoy.
This method differs from standing at a stove, stirring a sauce like bolognese or cherry tomato sauce, allowing me to multitask while the food is cooking. When I have more time, I enjoy making vegan stuffed shells, which are just as comforting but bring a different kind of richness with their creamy filling.
Ingredients Highlight
The complete list of ingredients with measurements, can be found in the full recipe card below.
Bite-sized pasta (normal or gluten free) such as penne or spirals is baked in a passata and coconut cream sauce, which turns out beautifully creamy when cooked.
The bake is filled with pitted black olives, diced zucchini, whole garlic cloves, eggplant, and white navy beans. I especially love baked zucchini, like this zucchini scarpaccia
As there is no cheese added to this bake, I sprinkle in some nutritional yeast for that cheesy flavor.
Variations
If you want to add some leafy greens, throw in some spinach leaves. Slice up some mushrooms. They are always a good pairing with pasta - oooh I am now thinking of my mushroom pasta.
If you are not replacing any other vegetable, but adding some, you may need to slightly increase the sauce to suit.
Feel like adding some sausage? Check out this vegan salami.
Janelle’s Tips
I recommend chopping the veggies as uniformly as possible to help them cook evenly.
Make sure that all the ingredients are evenly distributed throughout the casserole dish, and covered in the sauce so a bit of everything can be scooped up and served. Avoid pasta sticking out of the sauce as they wont bake till tender, but be crunchy.
Storage
Let the pasta bake cool down to room temperature then transfer to an air-tight container and refrigerate for up to 5 days. Can be enjoyed cold or warm, like this rasta pasta. To warm up, simple reheat to the desired temperature.
This vegan pasta bake can also be frozen for up to 3 months in an airtight container in required portion sizes. Thaw and reheat as per usual.
Did you make this? I'd love to know! Leave me a comment below with a ★★★★★ star rating or tag @plantbasedfolk on social media.
Recipe
Vegan Pasta Bake No Cheese
Ingredients
- 360 grams Pasta can be gluten free
- 1 head Garlic peeled and cloves kept whole
- 1 large Zucchini chopped small
- 1 small Eggplant chopped small
- 1 cup White bean cooked if using dry (canned is fine, just drain)
- 2½ cups Passata
- 1⅓ cup Coconut cream
- ¼ cup Nutritional Yeast
- 1 teaspoon Black pepper cracked
- 1 teaspoon Salt to taste
- 1¼ cup Water
- ¾ cup Black olives pitted and chopped
Instructions
- In a casserole dish, add pasta, passata and coconut cream. Stir through pasta until completely covered in sauce.
- Add all other ingredients and mix thoroughly together, ensuring every bit is covered in sauce.
- Cover with lid or foil and bake in a pre-heated oven 180C (360F) for 50 minutes. Allow 10 minutes of resting time with the lid on (do not open the lid!) and then serve warm or cold.
Video
Notes
Equipment
Nutrition
N.B., nutrition info is an estimate based on an online nutrition calculator. This will vary based on the specific ingredients you use.
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Colin Townsend
Just wondering why the garlic cloves are left whole? Not used to whole cloves, how would chopping them go?
Janelle Hama
my family loves cooked whole garlic as they turn really soft and creamy, but you can definitely chop them up if you prefer