This Pasta with Broccoli and Capers is a plant based pasta recipe that you will turn to time and time again. So delicious and so easy!; It's the perfect blend of flavors! Broccoli, pasta, garlic, capers, red pepper flakes, olive oil and topped with some freshly grated parmesan cheese! Fast and easy perfect for an busy weeknight dinner!
The Best Plant Based Pasta Recipe!
Here at the Sidewalk Shoes household, we try to eat plant based a couple of times a week. I'm not going to lie to you, a lot of times we miss the meat. We love chicken, beef, salmon, and don't even get me started on pork!
So, eating plant based feels a bit like something we "have" to do, not something we "want" to do.
Until this recipe, that is. This is the best plant based pasta recipe!! As I was eating it, I kept pausing to think about how good it was. How it didn't need a single thing added to it. That I would make it again because I liked it so much, not because it filled our vegetarian recipe for the week.
Vegetarian Vs. Vegan
This pasta recipe is so easy to change from vegetarian to vegan. All you have to do is omit the parmesan cheese! You can see in the photo above, I served it once without the parmesan. It was still so good, though being a crazy cheese lover, I preferred the one with parmesan cheese.
I did a little searching and found a recipe for How to Make Vegan Parmesan Cheese - so if you are vegan, you could give that a try. Be sure and come back and let me know how it worked!
What Makes this Pasta with Broccoli Recipe Work
Since I've tried a lot of meatless pasta recipes with varying degrees of success, I spent some time thinking about what makes this one work so well.
Mashing the garlic with the salt to create a paste - I think this mellowed the garlic flavor and allowed it to evenly flavor the dish.; A hint of garlic in every bite as opposed to bits of garlic.
A generous amount of olive oil - I paused when I saw the amount of olive oil it called for, but then I realized that it is the fat in the recipe. It's what will carry the flavor through the whole dish. You could play around with using less.
Capers and Red Chile Flakes - a bit of heat and a bit of tang.
Broccoli - stems and florets cut into bite sized pieces. I think this is key. I've made lots of pasta with broccoli dishes and in all of the others, I used the broccoli florets, which resulted in either a bite of broccoli or a bite of pasta. Cutting both the peeled stems and the florets into small bite sized pieces allowed the broccoli flavor to go through the whole pasta dish.
Conchiglie Pasta - using a shell shaped pasta. The smaller pieces of broccoli and the capers could nestle in the shelled pasta - again making every bite perfectly flavorful.
Parmesan Cheese - don't use pregrated. Buy a chunk of the real thing and grate it yourself.
Pasta with Broccoli and Capers
You'll notice that I don't have any step by step photos of how to make this recipe. That's because I didn't plan on blogging it. I didn't expect it to be so good!
This was the first recipe I tried from The New Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone, but as you can imagine it will not be my last.
It is fast and easy and totally delicious!
Looking for More Plant Based Recipes?
Sweet Potato and Baby Spinach Frittata
Black Bean Salad with Avocado Dressing
Instant Pot Frittata with Spinach and Mushrooms
If you make this delicious pasta recipe, I would love it if you would tag me on Pinterest | Instagram | Facebook
Pasta with Broccoli and Capers
Ingredients
- 2 cloves garlic peeled
- ½ teaspoon sea salt
- ⅓ cup olive oil
- ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes
- ¼ cup capers rinsed
- 1 ½ pounds broccoli
- 1 pound conchiglie or any medium to small shell pasta
- parmesan cheese freshly grated, for serving
- fresh ground black pepper
Instructions
- Start heating a large pot of water to boiling.
- Mince the garlic and using the flat side of your knife smash it into a paste with the salt and put in a large bowl. Add the oil, pepper flakes, and capers to the bowl.
- Thickly peel the broccoli stems. Cut the stems and the florets into bite sized pieces (I did about ½ inch size.)
- Add the broccoli and salt (I use a generous amount - you want the water salty like the sea) to the boiling water. Cook uncovered for 4-5 minutes. Scoop out the broccoli with a strainer and add to the bowl. Toss with the oil mixture.
- Add the pasta to the water and cook per directions. Drain and add to the pasta. Toss and adjust for seasoning, adding plenty of pepper.
- Serve with freshly grated parmesan cheese.
Mary Ann says
My husband is a meat and potatoes kind of guy, at least until we met 43 years ago! Then he discovered Italian cooking, the joy of pasta, and meatless dishes. I was raised on this with 2 changes. We didn't use capers (though I will from now on) and I use Romano cheese instead of Parmesan. It has a sharper taste that I love.
Thanks so much for sharing an old time recipe with everyone. We used to eat this way because it was a more affordable meal for a family and we weren't wealthy by any means. Now we eat it because it's just plain good!
Pam Greer says
So glad you enjoyed it! It is one of my favorite pasta dishes!
Debra says
Love the hint of garlic tip. Makes a big difference. THe addition of capers is so simple...but really works well and adds just the right amount of salt to not need the cheese. Thank you for this recipe.
Tracy says
We just started to consciously eat more plant based and less meat in our house and I’ve been looking for recipes that my carnivore husband will enjoy but that are vegetarian. Thank you for this one- he loved it! And I love capers so much, you made me realize I don’t cook with them enough!
Pam Greer says
So glad he liked it, it's one of our favorites.
Trish Bozeman says
We love this easy recipe! My toddler gobbles it up while I love the briny capers. So perfect for a weeknight.
Dana says
Yaaaaaas! I love pasta with broccoli. I love pasta with capers. Yet somehow I've never thought to bring them together. Love it with the shells, too. They just cup up all of those flavors perfectly 🙂
Pam Greer says
It's so good!
Sarah says
Yum! I love adding spinach to my pasta but I never thought about broccoli. I actually have a couple heads of broccoli in the fridge right now- I’ll have to try this!
Jenni LeBaron says
Conchiglie is such a great pasta because it has a built in pocket for all the lovely bits of garlic can accumulate! This pasta with broccoli recipe looks like a delicious dinner option that my whole family will enjoy. Love the capers too!
Pam Greer says
I know! It has become my favorite pasta shape!
Sandra Shaffer says
We also go meatless at least a couple of times a week, so I'm always looking for new recipes to try. You are right, you won't miss the meat with this pasta dish. Super satisfying and the capers add such a delicious flavor...so don't skip that ingredients!
Pam Greer says
It is perfect for meatless meals!
Gloria says
I am such a pasta lover. ANY KIND of pasta (well NOT squid ink). This looks delicious. I would love this for dinner any night of the week.
Pam Greer says
It's so good Gloria, we have it all the time!
Carla Simpson says
Hi Pam - I finally got around to buying some "cup" pasta and making this last night for dinner. You are so right about using this type of pasta would result in every bite having a morsel of every flavor! This is why this recipe works. Also, I ate some cold for lunch today, and it was even more delicious! No kidding! It would make a great summer cold pasta salad! Thanks! Carla
Pam Greer says
So glad you liked it!!
Ann says
That looks so delicious and wil go on rotation here
Pam Greer says
Oh, I hope you like it!