Creamy roasted cauliflower and spinach pasta recipe
Try a creamy pasta recipe with a difference – add rosemary-roasted cauliflower and fresh spinach for a tasty flavour combo. Make a quick white sauce with Grana Padano and serve simply with black pepper and extra cheese. To make it veggie, swap the Gran Padano for Cheddar!
See method- Serves 4
- 10 mins to prepare and 25 mins to cook
- 508 calories / serving
- Freezable
Ingredients
- 400g frozen cauliflower florets
- 2 garlic cloves (skin on), bashed
- 2 small red onions, cut into wedges
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 2 rosemary sprigs, leaves chopped
- 350g penne
- 30g unsalted butter
- 20g plain flour
- 250ml milk
- 40g grated Grana Padano
- 125g fresh spinach
Each serving contains
- Energy
- 2145kJ 508.0kcal
- Fat
- 15g
- Saturates
- 7g
- Salt
- 0.5g
- Sugars
- 8g
of the Reference intake
Carbohydrate 78.7gProtein 19.5gFibre 2.6g
Method
- Preheat the oven to gas 6, 200°C, fan 180°C. Put the cauliflower and garlic on one side of a baking tray and the onions on the other. Drizzle everything with the oil, sprinkle with the rosemary, then roast for 25 mins until golden and crisp.
- Meanwhile, cook the penne to pack instructions. Drain, reserving 150ml of the pasta water, then return to the pan.
- For the sauce make a roux by melting the butter in a large saucepan over a medium heat and adding the flour. Cook for 1 min, stirring, then gradually add the milk, whisking constantly until smooth. Bring to the boil, then simmer for 2 mins. Remove from the heat.
- Discard the skins from the garlic and add to the white sauce along with the cauliflower. Use a potato masher to mash until smooth, or blitz in a food processor. Add 20g Grana Padano and season to taste.
- Add the white sauce to the pasta with the onions and spinach. Stir until the spinach has wilted, then add enough reserved water to make a silky sauce. Top with extra Grana Padano and black pepper to serve.
- See more Pasta recipes
Freezing and defrosting guidelines
Freeze sauce only. In order to enjoy optimum flavour and quality, frozen items are best used within 3 months of their freezing date. For more tips on freezing and defrosting food, read our article Love Your Freezer.
Tip
To make it vegetarian, use finely grated Cheddar instead of Grana Padano.
