Vegetarian Pasta Sauce ideas please.

[glitterbiscuits]

This is my current repertoire

Tomato and lentil
Tomato and Quorn bolognese

Both of theses can have carrot, courgette, onions, mushrooms, peppers added depending what’s in the fridge. I will also use it for lasagne.

Cheese sauce- home made.

Pesto ( from a jar!)

Any suggestions on some additions to my list please?

White bean and quorn chorizo is pretty nice. Just follow a bean and sausage pasta recipe. Can make white bean pasta by itself with a little garlic and olive oil.

Pasta Primavera.

I also like white sauce (no cheese) with sweetcorn and garlic with linguine or farfalle.

Indian style pasta has cheese sauce, pineapple, and mixed veg, if you prefer a sweeter dish

200g frozen spinach, thawed and drained, 250g ricotta, 50g gruyere cheese, good pinch salt and grating on nutmeg.

Blend in a processor until smooth. Stir into pasta with a little cooking water if too thick.

Yum

DDs current favourite (having it tonight!) is lemon linguine. Approx 200ml good olive oil, juice and zest of approx 4 lemons - whisk til creamy, then stir in a tub of finely grated Parmesan til it ‘melts’ . Stir in to the cooked linguine and serve with Caesar salad.

A friend of mine makes a really great garlic, mushroom and white wine pasta.

I like to roast halved cherry tomatoes, whole garlic cloves and some red onion and serve tossed through pasta (mash the cooked garlic cloves up with a fork first) with good olive oil, fresh basil and black pepper. Sometimes with a baked goats cheese on the top if I'm feeling frivolous.

Tomatoes, onions, garlic, black olives, capers, jalapenos and lime juice.

Add ground black pepper and parmesan from a height.

Pasta with roast veg - I do a red pepper and an onion between two, but whatever you fancy - served with shed loads of grated Parmesan and black pepper
Feta cheese pasta - fry pine nuts, then add garlic to cook a little bit, and fresh thyme. Stir into pasta with chopped up feta.
Pasta with sun dried tomatoes, sliced black olives, garlic and olive oil, lots of fresh parsley on the top

Broccoli and cream cheese - works a treat with tagliatelle or spaghetti

Butternut squash, spinach and pinenut pasta is very nice:

Cut a peeled butternut squash into 1 cm cubes and roast in olive oil together with a chopped red onion, some chopped garlic, dried oregano and a little salt. Once cooked (about 40 min) toss through cooked penne /fusilli pasta together with a couple of large handfuls of baby spinach leaves (which will wilt). Put into pasta bowls and sprinkle over some toasted pine nuts and a few pieces of torn buffalo mozzarella.

Parmesan is unlikely to be vegetarian.

To be called Parmesan it has to contain rennet, however there are alternatives

Last night I had A sauce

Fry red onion till soft, add garlic and whole cherry tomatoes and fry gently till the tomatoes pop (squish them with the spatula to get the juice oozing out), add black olives, dried and or fresh chilli, oregano, basil then a big sploodge of tomato purée, finish with a couple of measures of vodka (makes an awesome creamy sauce without needing cream)

Im cooking it again tonight it was so damn good.

Oh, there are some super ideas here.

I have a butternut squash I was planning for soup. I hate peeling and chopping them so I’ve been putting it off.

Love spinach so temped by that

Broccoli and cream cheese! Why didn’t I think of that?

Vodka? In pasta sauce? That’s a new idea.

I really wan to try Nigellas spaghetti with Marmite but only 2 out of the 5 of us like Marmite

Sainsburys do this which is really handy when you can't face preparing a squash.

spinach and ricotta
lemon,garlic butter.thicker version add cream
spring onion,garlic,,white wine,stock sautee down to cook off wine a little.then add some crème fraiche.stir through linguine.
white sauce,tuna,sweetcorn
butternut squash,garlic,sage
bot red and green pesto
creamy peas,garlic and parmesan pasta

Make a carbonara without the ham/bacon, just egg and cheese.

Your favourite tomato sauce with cubes of aubergine fried till golden stirred in just before serving. Serve with grated cheese.

Mushrooms (fried) and cream cheese such as garlic Boursin stirred into hot drained pasta.

Kate some nice ideas but tuna isn't veggie.

That sainsbury soup mix is great i use it at least once a week for soup, casserole, pasta sauce... I cook it in veggie stock.

Also like mushroom, red pepper and white wine sauce

White creamy tarragon sauce can be nice.

I also do a creamed corn and mushroom sauce.

I was dubious about vodka but it makes a tomato based sauce amazing 😉

parmesan is unlikely to be vegetarian
Indeed. It’s vegan Parmesan so ie not Parmesan I guess 😀. Easy to get these days though, Tesco and Waitrose do it.

I think we could maybe take it as read on a vegetarian thread that people and especially the OP would be looking to use the available vegetarian hard cheese cheese options ('parmesan' as a kind of shorthand).

Fortunately there are a lot these days. It wasn't always the case, but thankfully times have changed.

I've never tried the vodka sauce but I'm tempted to now.

Roast a butternut squash with honey and salt, then puree it. Sautee chopped leek in butter, add flour and cook to a roux, then add milk and gently bring to boil whole stirring, until it thickens. Add frozen peas, grated cheddar and pureed squash and cook for 5 mins. Tip over pasta and top with more cheese. It's lovely.

Gruyere isn’t vegetarian either and I’ve never been able to find an alternative with the same texture and acidity.

This Cavolo Nero sauce is my all-time favourite pasta sauce. I use Sainsbury’s basics hard Italian cheese instead of Parmesan. Really easy to make and freezes well.

www.telegraph.co.uk/foodanddrink/recipes/9884982/Cavolo-nero-pasta-recipe.html

Arrabiata - fry onions and red peppers, plus garlic. Add chopped cherry tomatoes and red chilli plus s & p and a shake of balsamic vinegar.

Sainsbo's do slices of butternut squash. I halve them and roast them with chunks of red onion plus whole garlic cloves and a bit of sage. Stir into pasta with a bit of creme fraiche.

Wouldn't the cheeses be vegetarian but not vegan?

If so I would second the cream cheese and broccoli idea!

LittleBear some cheese use animal rennet which isn't usually acceptable to vegetarians as it's a meat by-product.

Parmesan has to use calf rennet to be called parmesan, but you can get hard cheese alternatives. The Sainsbury's one mentioned is good or Tesco do a free from grated "cheese" that's passable.

Philadelphia (soft cream cheese) does not contain rennet and is suitable for vegetarians.