15-Minute Roasted Red Pepper Chickpea Pasta

Serving up a wholesome & protein packed chickpea pasta with a delicious & simple roasted red pepper sauce! This 15 minute meal is filled with flavor, has the creamiest cashew tomato sauce, and is vegan + gluten-free friendly.

Ceramic bowl with chickpea pasta in red pepper sauce.

I’ve been working on quite a few different pasta recipes lately, and this one definitely has me excited!

If you’ve never had chickpea pasta before, I thought I’d introduce you to it since we eat it 1-2 times a week! It’s a pasta made completely from chickpea flour. It’s 100% plant-based, packed with protein, and naturally gluten free. It is the first healthy pasta I’ve tasted that can completely stand next to regular pasta noodles!

We’re huge fans. Especially when you pair the pasta with this super creamy red pepper tomato sauce! I’m not one for “creamy” sauces when it comes to pasta. But this one is light, fresh, and has zero dairy (thank you cashews!). We love it!

Ingredients Needed

Ingredients for red pepper pasta arranged on a white counter.

Nothing but simple pantry ingredients included in this recipe. You’ll need pasta sauce/tomato sauce (we recommend homemade or Rao’s), roasted red peppers, chickpea pasta (we used penne), salt & black pepper, fresh basil, and unsalted raw cashews.

How to Make Chickpea Pasta with Red Pepper Sauce

Make the sauce
While the pasta water is boiling, add all of your sauce ingredients to a high-powdered blender. Blend on high for 30 seconds until sauce is creamy and smooth.

Heat sauce and add pasta
In a pan bring sauce to a low simmer just to warm up – taste and adjust seasoning with salt & black pepper if needs more flavor. Add cooked pasta and stir in with sauce – it’s ready to serve!

Our Favorite Pasta Noodles

For this recipe, I used penne noodles by Banza. We also love using their shell, rotini, and rigatoni noodles for this recipe!

If you’d like to use lentil noodles instead, we love them equally as much! You can also use any traditional pasta noodles you have on hand.

pasta in a stainless steel pan with red pepper pasta sauce.

Extra Tips to Remember

  • Using cashews: I’ve never needed to soak cashews when I use a high-powered blender. If you do not have a tool like that on hand, you’ll need to soak your cashews in water for several hours or quick soak (see below). This will help soften the cashews so they come out creamy in the sauce and not chunky.
  • Quick soaking cashews: (if you do not have a high-powered blender and want a quick method for soaking cashews). Fill a small pot with water and add cashews, cover and bring to a boil. Then remove from heat and let cashews soak in hot water for 15-20 minutes. Drain and use in recipe!
  • Tomato sauce: we love using a homemade tomato sauce or arrabbiatta sauce. But whenever we don’t have this on hand, we use Rao’s marinara!
  • Roasting red peppers: if you don’t want to use store-bought roasted peppers, you can make your own! It’s super easy and so so tasty.

How to Store & Freeze Leftovers

Store leftovers in an airtight container in fridge for 3-4 days. Reheat pasta and sauce in a pan with a splash of water if needed to help thin out sauce.

Freeze leftover sauce in a ziplock bag or airtight container for 1-2 months. Thaw and heat in pan when ready to use again.

A hand using a fork to eat penne pasta in a bright orange sauce.

Serve up this creamy pasta with your favorite crusty bread and a fresh salad of greens! It has all the comfort food feelings you could want, but without the heaviness of cream or regular wheat pasta. It’s truly the best!

We hope you enjoy this plant-based meal just as much as we do! xoxo

More Tasty Pasta Recipes

If you tried this Creamy Red Pepper Chickpea Pasta recipe or any other recipe, don’t forget to rate the recipe and let me know what you think. I love hearing from you! You can also follow me on PINTEREST, INSTAGRAM, and FACEBOOK for more crave-worthy content.

Ceramic bowl with chickpea pasta in red pepper sauce.

Creamy Red Pepper Chickpea Pasta

5 from 5 votes

Serving up a wholesome & protein packed chickpea pasta with a delicious & simple roasted red pepper sauce! This 15 minute meal is filled with flavor, has the creamiest cashew tomato sauce, and is vegan + gluten-free friendly.

Servings 4
Prep Time: 5 mins
Cook Time: 8 mins

Course: Main Course
Cuisine: American, Italian
Tags: chickpea pasta recipe, creamy vegan pasta, red pepper pasta sauce
Freezer Friendly: Yes
Calories: 382 kcal
Author: Bethany Kramer

Ingredients

  • 8 oz box chickpea pasta
  • 2 cups pasta sauce
  • 1 12 oz jar roasted red peppers, drained
  • 1/2 cup raw cashews (see notes if not using high-powdered blender)
  • 1/2 cup filtered water
  • 2 Tablespoon fresh basil, chopped
  • 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes (adjust level of spice to taste)
  • 1 garlic clove *optional
  • salt & black pepper (season to taste)

Instructions

  1. Bring a medium pot with water to a boil, season water with generous dash of salt (about 1-2 teaspoons). Cook pasta until "al dente" – it should have a bite to it and not be too soft.

  2. In a high-powered blender, add tomato sauce, roasted peppers, cashews, water, red pepper flakes, and pinch of salt & pepper. Blend on high for 30 seconds or until consistency is super creamy and smooth. If sauce needs more flavor, add 1 garlic glove and season to taste with salt & black pepper if needed.

  3. Warm red pepper sauce in pan over LOW heat. Then add cooked pasta to sauce with chopped basil. Serve and enjoy!

Notes

Using cashews: I’ve never needed to soak cashews when I use a high-powered blender. If you do not have a tool like that on hand, you’ll need to soak your cashews in water for several hours or quick soak (see below). This will help soften the cashews so they come out creamy in the sauce and not chunky.

Quick soaking cashews: (if you do not have a high-powered blender and want a quick method for soaking cashews). Fill a small pot with water and add cashews, cover and bring to a boil. Then remove from heat and let cashews soak in hot water for 15-20 minutes. Drain and use in recipe!

Nutrition Facts
Creamy Red Pepper Chickpea Pasta
Amount Per Serving (56 g)
Calories 382 Calories from Fat 124
% Daily Value*
Fat 13.8g21%
Cholesterol 2.6mg1%
Sodium 629.3mg26%
Carbohydrates 52.9g18%
Fiber 5g20%
Sugar 12.9g14%
Protein 18.4g37%
Vitamin A 20IU0%
Vitamin C 124mg150%
Calcium 40mg4%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
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Bethany Kramer

Bethany Kramer is the cook and photographer behind A Simple Palate. She found a deep love for food and nutrition after learning to cook from her mom at eight years old. Since then she’s been developing and sharing recipes from her own kitchen that are bold in flavor and nourishing to the body!

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Recipe Rating




8 Comments

  • Avatar for Emily Emily says:

    Thank you for this recipe! I made it for dinner last night – so simple, delicious, and quick. I’m not much of a cook, but the recipe couldn’t have been easier to follow. I’ll be making this again for sure!!

  • Avatar for Gail Gail says:

    5 stars
    So tasty! Thinking I might try adding Cajun seasoning next time (and maybe some no-sugar added kielbasa?). Thank you!

  • Avatar for Tanya Warren Tanya Warren says:

    5 stars
    I added a tsp of cajun seasoning and it was amazing!!

  • Avatar for Sanjay Shah Sanjay Shah says:

    5 stars
    Loved it. I am a once-in-a-while cook and still have Google simple ingredients/steps. This one was an easy-to-follow decide that was delicious and nutritious. I am cooking again, albeit with variations in ingredients for the sauce to make it less spicy….but I’d love recipes like this one

  • Avatar for Rebekah Shephard Rebekah Shephard says:

    5 stars
    I LOVE this recipe, as someone who grew up in an American Italian family. Only thing I added was sautéed onion and garlic.

  • Avatar for Joe Joe says:

    5 stars
    Lovely recipe. Just used it for my meal prep. I used chicken Ravioli instead and it came out well. I might add some peas to it next time.

  • Avatar for Albertina Albertina says:

    This looks so good and I am super excited to try it