The tastiest creamy vegan Spinach Artichoke Pasta to satisfy all your creamy pasta cravings! Just a few simple ingredients and 20 minutes to make this ultra-satisfying dish. Use gluten-free pasta if you prefer a gluten-free dinner.
Who else loves the classic spinach and artichoke flavor combination?? I do! One of my most popular recipes on this site is my Vegan Spinach Artichoke Dip - I could eat that by the spoonful! So I decided to simplify that recipe and turn it into a super tasty spinach artichoke Alfredo pasta dish!!
This vegan pasta dinner is:
- Super flavorful and satisfying
- Ready in 20 minutes
- Super easy to make!
- Dairy-free (obviously!) and gluten-free, if you use gluten-free pasta
- A great way to get extra veggies in with dinner!
Related recipe: Vegan Pesto Pasta
Ready to make it??
Ingredients
- 8 oz uncooked pasta, such as rigatoni
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 10 oz frozen spinach (or use 6-10 cups fresh baby spinach, to taste - spinach cooks down a lot!)
- 14-oz can marinated artichoke hearts (in water or in olive oil - your choice!)
- 1 cup raw cashews, soaked for 1-2 hours in hot water, then rinsed and drained
- ¼ cup nutritional yeast (or less, to taste)
- ½ teaspoon each salt and pepper
- 1 cup unflavored, unsweetened plant milk (such as cashew or almond)
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
Optional garnishes:
- Fresh basil leaves
- Vegan Parmesan
Related recipe: Vegan Stroganoff
Instructions
Step 1: Cook the pasta according to the package directions. Rinse, drain, and set aside.
Step 2: Add the soaked cashews, nutritional yeast*, salt, pepper, plant milk, and garlic and onion powder to a blender. Blend until smooth and creamy, scraping down as necessary.
*Cooking tip: start with 2 tablespoons nutritional yeast, and blend in more if you like. Not everyone loves as much nutritional yeast as I do!
Step 3: Heat a pot over medium-low heat and add the olive oil. Sauté the spinach and artichoke for 2 minutes, or until the spinach is thawed and lightly cooked.
Step 4: Slowly stir in the cashew cream, stirring to combine all the ingredients. If you would like a thinner sauce, add in a bit of water. Remove from heat once the sauce is hot.
Step 5: Toss the cooked pasta with the cashew-cream spinach artichoke sauce and serve warm, with fresh basil leaves and vegan Parmesan cheese.
Related recipe: Vegan Pasta Salad
What to serve with creamy spinach artichoke pasta
I love a little protein with my pasta dinner, otherwise I don't always feel full! Vegan steaks are amazing with this pasta dish, and so are Gardein Chick'n Strips!
And of course, a little extra veggies are always a great idea. This cheesy roasted cauliflower is a family favorite, and this yellow squash goes great with pasta.
Related recipe: Vegan Feta Pasta
Cashew cream sauce
I love a good cashew cream sauce, I find that cashews give vegan sauces the perfect thick, rich, creamy texture. To make sure that your sauce doesn't taste like cashews, use raw cashews and soak them in hot water to remove a lot of the cashew flavor.
A high-powered blender, such as a Blendtec or a Vitamix, is amazing for making the smoothest sauce, but most blenders will get the job done.
If you need a nut-free creamy sauce, you can just buy a cashew-free vegan Alfredo sauce, such as Daiya (which is cashew-free, but it has coconut oil), and then stir the garlic powder and onion powder into the sauce.
Other vegan main dishes you must try:
If you enjoyed this recipe, let me know with a comment and a star rating below. And don't forget to share it on Facebook and save it on Pinterest for later!
Vegan Spinach Artichoke Creamy Pasta
Ingredients
- 8 oz uncooked pasta, such as rigatoni
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 10 oz frozen spinach, or use 8-10 cups fresh baby spinach
- 14 oz can marinated artichoke hearts, in water or in olive oil - your choice!
- 1 cup raw cashews, soaked for 1-2 hours in hot water, then rinsed and drained
- ¼ cup nutritional yeast
- ½ teaspoon each salt and pepper
- 1 cup plant milk, unflavored and unsweetened
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- Optional garnishes: fresh basil leaves, vegan Parmesan
Special equipment
- Medium saucepan
Instructions
- Cook the pasta according to the package directions. Rinse, drain, and set aside.
- Add the soaked cashews, nutritional yeast, salt, pepper, plant milk, and garlic and onion powder to a blender. Blend until smooth and creamy, scraping down as necessary.
- Heat a saucepan over medium-low heat and add the olive oil. Sauté the frozen spinach and drained artichoke for 2-3 minutes, or until the spinach is thawed and lightly cooked.
- Slowly stir in the cashew sauce, stirring to combine all the ingredients. Remove from heat once the sauce is hot.
- Toss the cooked pasta with the cashew-cream spinach artichoke sauce and serve warm, with fresh basil leaves and vegan Parmesan cheese. Optional: transfer to an oven-safe baking dish, top with shredded vegan mozzarella, and bake for 5-10 minutes at 375 degrees Fahrenheit.
Notes
- Start with 2 tablespoons nutritional yeast, and blend in more if you need to. Not everyone loves as much nutritional yeast as I do!
- To make sure that your sauce doesn't taste like cashews, use raw cashews and soak them in hot water to remove a lot of the cashew flavor.
- A high-powered blender, such as a Blendtec or a Vitamix, is amazing for making the smoothest sauce, but most blenders will get the job done.
- If you need a nut-free creamy sauce, you can just buy a cashew-free vegan Alfredo sauce, such as Daiya (which is cashew-free, but it has coconut oil), and then stir the garlic powder and onion.
Nutrition
Questions? Feedback? I love to hear from you!