Creamy Vegan Spinach Pasta
You are certain to love this easy and light creamy spinach pasta. It’s a great recipe for summer or any time of year. It’s flavorful and creamy, but with a lightness you wouldn’t expect. The pasta will give you energy without being bogged down from cheese and heavy cream. It pairs perfectly with our vegan Crab Cakes, but honestly, it’s also a great meal all on its own, with some garlic bread of course!
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Sometimes you want a creamy pasta but something not too heavy.
Something that hits that craving for comfort food without weighing you down or inducing a total food coma.
In those times, I turn to this Creamy Vegan Spinach Pasta recipe. It’s a great way to satisfy my cravings for comfort food but keep myself feeling productive.
Why You’ll Love This Creamy Vegan Spinach Pasta:
There are so many reasons to love this easy pasta recipe, but here are our top 3:
- Made with silken tofu, not cashew cream. This makes the recipe much more budget-friendly and good for those with nut allergies!
- It’s an easy recipe to make. Saute some spinach, blend up a sauce, and bring it all together!
- The best flavor. Subtle, fresh, and zingy is the best word I can think of to describe it. With a good sting of garlic and zest of lemon thrown in for good measure. This is a flavor the whole family will love!
Ingredients for Easy Creamy Vegan Pasta
You’ll need just 8 simple ingredients + spices to make this easy creamy lemony pasta!
We’ll go over some ingredient notes here to ensure you get the best results, but you can find the detailed recipe with ingredient amounts in the recipe card at the bottom of this post.
- Fettuccine noodles + some of the reserved water
- Olive oil
- Fresh spinach – de-stemmed and chopped
- Garlic cloves – minced
- Silken tofu
- Dry white wine or white wine vinegar – for sauteing the spinach. I like to use an Italian pinot grigio both in and with this recipe.
- Lemon juice – fresh is best, but bottled will work too!
- White miso paste – This adds a tangy zip, almost like parmesan.
- Spice Cabinet: onion powder, salt, white pepper
Substitution Options for Creamy Spinach Sauce Pasta
If you need a substitute for the ingredients above, here are our best tips. But remember, substituting any ingredient can cause a not-always-pleasant final result. Let us know if you try any substitutions and how they work out for you in the comments below!
For the fettuccine: Feel free to sub your favorite pasta shape here. Any type of pasta would work. I especially think penne would be great!
For the silken tofu: You can use soft tofu as a 1:1 sub. You can probably also use raw cashews to make a similar sauce, but you would need to add more liquid to the recipe and use a high-powered blender or food processor. Coconut milk may be a decent sub, but you would need to thicken it or cook it down considerably. This would also affect the cooking time.
For the olive oil: We use this to saute the spinach. Feel free to omit it and saute the spinach in vegetable broth if you are oil-free. You can also use a different oil like avocado oil or sunflower oil.
For the spinach: Feel free to use your favorite greens here like kale! Baby spinach is fine too. You can also go another route and try adding some cherry tomatoes or artichokes to create a vegan spinach artichoke pasta!
For the wine: Instead of white wine, you can use white wine vinegar or just white vinegar.
For the miso paste: You can sub chickpea miso 1:1 or try something like sauerkraut brine to get a similar fermented flavor. More white wine or some vegan parmesan cheese will also work. Nutritional yeast can be added to the sauce but is not a 1 for 1 sub for miso paste.
How to Make Creamy Vegan Lemon Pasta with Spinach
You’re going to love how easy it is to make this spinach pasta recipe!
Step 1: Cook the pasta.
Get a large pot of salted water boiling and cook the pasta according to package directions, reserving 1/3 cup of the pasta cooking water for the sauce.
Step 2: Make the creamy sauce.
While the pasta cooks, make your sauce by adding all the ingredients to a small blender or food processor and blending until smooth. Cover and set this in the fridge until ready to use.
Step 3: Saute the spinach.
Heat the olive oil in a medium saute pan on medium heat. Add the garlic and cook for 2-3 minutes. Add the spinach and stir to coat. Cook for 1-2 minutes or until spinach is slightly wilted.
Step 4: Assemble the dish
Toss the sauce with the drained pasta and 1/3 cup reserved pasta water. Then, stir in the spinach. Cover and heat on low stirring often until warmed through and the sauce has reached your desired thickness.
How to Serve This Healthy Spinach Pasta Recipe
Serve this vegan spinach pasta hot with vegan crab cakes, soy curl chicken, vegan chicken cutlets, or pesto tofu!
It’s also wonderful with a side of vegan garlic bread or cheesy vegan breadsticks and topped with freshly cracked black pepper, red pepper flakes, or pine nuts.
If you’re looking for a lighter option, serve it with a side salad like our Copycat Olive Garden Salad or Vegan Caesar Salad! The vegan caesar also uses silken tofu, so you can use the rest of the block you have and make a half-batch perfect for lunch!
How to Store Leftover Creamy Spinach Pasta
Store leftover pasta in the fridge in an airtight container for up to 5 days.
Reheat leftover pasta in the microwave at 80% heat for 2-4 minutes, stopping to stir and check the heat every 1-2 minutes until warmed through.
More Creamy Vegan Pasta Recipes
We love creamy vegan pastas in this house! Here are more options you’ll love:
I so hope you enjoy this recipe as much as we did!
When you try it, don’t forget to leave a star rating and review below. This helps support our work and we love hearing about your cooking adventures!
Until next time!
Creamy Vegan Spinach Pasta
Ingredients
For the dish:
- 8 oz dry fettuccine noodles
- â…“ cup reserved pasta water
For the garlic spinach:
- 1/2 tsp olive oil
- 2.5 cups spinach de-stemmed and chopped
- 5-6 cloves garlic minced
For the creamy sauce:
- 4 oz silken tofu
- 2 Tbsp dry white wine or white wine vinegar
- 2 Tbsp lemon juice
- 1 Tbsp miso paste
- 1/2 Tbsp onion powder
- 1 tsp sea salt
- 1/4 tsp white pepper
Instructions
- Cook the pasta according to box directions, reserving 1/3 cup of the pasta cooking water for the sauce.
- Make the sauce: While the pasta cooks, make your sauce by adding all the ingredients to a small blender or food processor and blending until smooth. Cover and set this in the fridge until ready to use.
- Saute the spinach: Heat the olive oil in a medium saute pan on medium heat. Add the garlic and cook for 2-3 minutes. Add the spinach and stir to coat. Cook for 1-2 minutes or until spinach is slightly wilted.
- Assemble the dish: Toss the sauce with the drained pasta and 1/3 cup reserved pasta water. Then, stir in the spinach. Cover and heat on low stirring often until warmed through and the sauce has reached your desired thickness.
- Serve hot with vegan crab cakes and/or garlic bread, topped with freshly cracked black pepper. Enjoy!
