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Vegan white pasta sauce in bowl.
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4.95 from 78 votes

Best vegan white pasta sauce recipe

This delicious vegan white pasta sauce is made with healthy beans, and garlic and oregano add so much flavor. Get dinner on the table in under 30 minutes!
Prep Time10 minutes
Cook Time15 minutes
Total Time25 minutes
Course: Sauce
Cuisine: Fusion, Italian
Diet: Gluten Free, Vegan, Vegetarian
Servings: 8 servings
Calories: 349kcal
Author: Vaishali · Holy Cow Vegan

Equipment

Ingredients

For blending

  • 3 cups canned or cooked white beans (approximately 26 ounces. If cooking beans from scratch, use 1 cup dried beans.)
  • ½ cup raw cashews
  • 2 tablespoons nutritional yeast (optional)
  • 1 teaspoon dried oregano
  • 1 cup water

Other ingredients

  • 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
  • 8-10 cloves garlic (minced or put through a garlic press)
  • ½ to 1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
  • 2 cups water
  • Juice and zest of one lemon (juiced and zested)
  • 1 tablespoon fresh oregano (optional)
  • 2 tablespoons fresh parsley
  • Salt to taste

For serving

  • 16 oz pasta (cooked to al dente texture)
US Customary - Metric

Instructions

Blend the sauce ingredients

  • Place the beans in a blender with the cashews, optional nutritional yeast and oregano. Add 1 cup water.
  • Blend until very smooth. Set aside.
    Blended bean puree in blender.

Make the sauce

  • Place olive oil in a sauté pan with the garlic. Turn heat to medium low and sauté the garlic 2-3 minutes until very aromatic and just beginning to turn color. Add the red pepper flakes and dried oregano and sauté for a few seconds.
    Garlic and pepper sauteing in pan.
  • Pour the blended bean puree into the pan. Add two cups water and mix well.
    Bean puree added to garlic and pepper in pan.
  • Turn heat up to medium and cook the sauce, stirring it frequently to make sure it doesn't stick to the bottom of the pan. Let the sauce warm through until steam rises. You don't have to wait for the sauce to boil. Add salt to taste, stir in the lemon zest and juice, fresh oregano, if using, and parsley. Turn off heat and mix into pasta.
    Lemon zest and parsley added to white sauce,

Notes

  • Nutrition information is for sauce with pasta. One serving of the sauce alone is 139 calories with six grams of protein.
  • Using a total of three cups of water in this recipe yields the perfect texture. But if you want a thinner sauce add more water.

Nutrition

Calories: 349kcal | Carbohydrates: 58g | Protein: 14g | Fat: 8g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 5g | Potassium: 251mg | Fiber: 6g | Sugar: 2g | Vitamin A: 174IU | Vitamin C: 2mg | Calcium: 77mg | Iron: 3mg