The secret to a great pasta primavera is the right balance of vegetable flavors and textures, plus a killer sauce. This vegan pasta recipe fits the bill, with crisp-tender broccoli, sweet bell peppers, earthy mushrooms, and tangy tomatoes, all of which are topped with a creamy walnut-and-herb sauce that gets a spicy kick from sambal oelek, an Asian chile paste. Sambal oelek can be found in the Asian section of most supermarkets, but you can also substitute a few drops of your favorite hot sauce. When blending the sauce, don’t worry about pre-chopping the parsley and cilantro. Simply trim away the larger stems before measuring the leaves, then place them directly in the food processor.
Recipe from drmcdougall.com
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Mary McDougall is a nurse and co-author of eight national bestselling books. She lectures nationwide, has created more than 2,000 health-supporting recipes, and has been caring for people with diet and lifestyle medicine for 25 years.
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Comments (9)
What could you substitute if allergic to walnuts? Thanks.
Hi J,
You could try using cannellini beans instead. When blended, they bring a similarly creamy, buttery texture to the walnuts. Please let us know how it goes.
Thank you!
Courtney Davison
Editor, Forks Over Knives
I was skeptical about the flavors of the sauce but it was delicious! I used green lentil rotini pasta and added raw chopped spinach at the end. Definitely a keeper in the dinner rotation. I am sure any variety of your favorite veggies would work in this dish!
This was delicious! Absolutely loved the sauce flavor; I used Sriracha sauce for hot sauce; left out mushrooms as my daughter doesn’t like them. Definitely will make again!
Delicious! I used sriracha for the hot sauce. I will most definitely make this again. I did sauté the mushrooms and bell peppers in a bit of olive oil before adding to the pot but I think I will stick to the directions next time.
This was delicious! I did add onions and carrots and I sauteed the vegetables with a small amount of vegetable broth. I like my pasta al dente and it would have cooked it too long.
The sauce on this was bright and flavorful. It did need more salt and pepper. I sauteed the mushrooms and peppers in a little olive oil. Broccoli I threw in the pasta water.
This was sooo good…although next time I´ll do the vegetables apart so I don´t have to throw their vitamins with the water.
Such a lot of hard work obviously goes into these recipes and I’m sure you’d welcome more comments.
I made this exactly according to the recipe, except for substituting Cap Bon- type harissa + some olive oil to the sauce and it was delicious.
Next time, I might turn the veg for a minute or two in a pan before adding, but the main event was the sauce, which I feel works without any added nooch on account of the texture and flavour of the walnuts. Thank you.