Easy Weeknight Pasta Bake (Vegan | Gluten Free | High Protein)

Pasta is the ultimate comfort food. Add some veggies, plant-based meat, sauce, and a crunchy breadcrumb topping and you’ve got an easy, vegan/vegetarian weeknight meal.

This recipe feels too simple and unfussy to actually call it a ‘recipe.’ It’s more like a guideline because so many of the ingredients can be swapped with whatever you have on hand of prefer, but it’s a great idea to keep in your back pocket for an easy and healthy meal that the whole family is sure to love. It’s a comforting weeknight meal that doesn’t require much thought or attention.

I keep this concept on rotation for when I don’t have the creative energy to come up with something fancy or completely homemade. It’s easy to keep a box of pasta and a jar of pasta sauce in the pantry and add veggies that you have laying around in your fridge. This recipe, in particular, is my favorite combination of ingredients within the umbrella of the many things this dish could be.

As usual, I love to use chickpea pasta because it is naturally gluten free, high in plant based protein and fiber, and more nutritious than regular pasta, but feel free to use any pasta you like! If using a chickpea pasta (or similar) you’ll have an incredibly wholesome meal full of plant based protein, fiber, and lots of veggies.

Do you cook pasta before making pasta bake?

In this recipe, I cook the pasta separately. I like the texture and flavor of roasting the vegetables and don’t want to compromise these aspects by cooking the pasta directly in with the vegetables.

WHAT MAKES THIS PASTA BAKE HIGH PROTEIN?

By using a bean-based pasta like Banza chickpea pasta rather than a regular pasta, this dish is naturally much higher in protein. Additionally, using a vegan sausage / meat substitute or beans will boost the protein content even more!

SUBSTITUTIONS

Vegetables - Feel free to use any vegetables you like. My favorites in this dish are broccoli/broccolini, onions, mushrooms, and tomatoes, but bell peppers, thinly sliced brussels sprouts, spinach, kale, and zucchini would work as well.

Sausage - The Beyond Meat Hot Italian Sausages add really amazing flavor and texture to this dish, but you can substitute any vegan sausage, chicken, meatballs, etc. that you like; or if you are looking for a more whole-foods option, you swap out the sausage for a can of drained and rinsed white beans. You can leave this out all together. If you are gluten free, make sure to check the ingredients of the meat substitutes, as many are made with gluten (the Beyond Sausages do not contain gluten).

Pasta - I always love using Banza chickpea pasta because it is naturally gluten free and high in protein and fiber; however, you can use regular pasta. Medium sized pasta shapes work well for this, i.e. cavatappi, farfalle, penne.

Pasta Sauce - Our local grocery store sells an organic arrabiata sauce that I love - it’s a little bit spicy and has great flavor without needing to add much. Use your favorite jarred (or, ideally, homemade!) pasta sauce.

Breadcrumbs - I love topping the pasta bake with some breadcrumbs mixed with a little bit of olive oil and salt because it adds a nice crunchy element to the dish, but we often top it with vegan mozzarella instead. For maximum simplicity/laziness, you don’t have to add anything on top! Fresh herbs are lovely as well if you want to be a little fancy.

HOW TO MAKE PASTA BAKE

Throw a bunch of vegetables (cut into bite sized pieces) in a baking dish with a drizzle of olive oil. Do not add salt during this step if you are using mushrooms - it will release too much moisture during this step and the veggies will steam instead of roasting. Bake at 400 F for 20 minutes.
Cook 8oz of pasta according to the package. Drain and set aside.
*Cook a few vegan sausages (or other meat substitute) in a skillet. Remove from the pan and cut into bite sized pieces.
**Add a carton of grape tomatoes to the same skillet and cook until blistered and starting to break open.
Add the cooked and drained pasta, sausage pieces, and blistered grape tomatoes to the baking dish with the roasted vegetables.
Pour over a 24oz jar of pasta sauce of your choice and add garlic powder, onion powder, and black pepper for additional seasoning (salt and chili flakes as well if necessary) and mix into the pasta, veggies, and sausage.
Top with breadcrumbs or vegan cheese and bake at 400 F for 10 minutes and then broil for a few minutes, keeping a close eye, until browned on top.

*If you use a can of beans instead of a meat replacement, you can skip this step and add the beans when you add the rest of the ingredients in step #5.

**If you don’t use the vegan sausage / meat substitute, you can roast the grape tomatoes along with the rest of the vegetables in step #1, but keep in mind that they will release moisture and the other vegetables will steam/boil rather than roasting.