Pasta with Roasted Cauliflower, Parsley, and Breadcrumbs
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- Prep Time 10 minutes
- Total Time 30 minutes
- Yield Serves 4
Ingredients
- Coarse salt and ground pepper
- 1 head cauliflower (about 2 1/2 pounds), cored and broken into small florets
- 1 medium red onion, halved and cut into thin wedges
- 5 garlic cloves, peeled and halved
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 4 slices white sandwich bread
- 12 ounces cavatappi or other short pasta
- 1/4 cup grated Parmesan, plus more for serving (optional)
- 1/4 cup fresh parsley, chopped
Directions
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Preheat oven to 475 degrees, with racks in upper and lower thirds. Set a large pot of salted water to boil. On a rimmed baking sheet, toss cauliflower, onion, and garlic with 2 tablespoons oil; season with salt and pepper. Roast on lower rack until lightly browned and tender, 20 minutes, tossing once.
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Meanwhile, in a food processor, combine bread and remaining 2 tablespoons oil; pulse until coarse crumbs form. Spread on a rimmed baking sheet. Bake on upper rack until golden brown, 5 to 6 minutes, tossing once.
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Cook pasta in boiling water until al dente. Reserve 1/2 cup pasta water; drain pasta and return to pot. Add cauliflower mixture, Parmesan, and parsley; toss to combine. Tossing pasta, gradually add enough pasta water to form a thin sauce that coats pasta. Serve topped with breadcrumbs and, if desired, more Parmesan.
Cook's Note
Cauliflower tastes surprisingly nutty and sweet when roasted. Break it up into small florets to help it cook quickly. We like cavatappi, but any short pasta will work.
This is definitely going to be making frequent appearances on our dinner table! I did substitute a healthier seed bread instead of the white. Will use more cauliflower, less pasta in the future, but it is a delicious, easy and inexpensive dish!
This was scrumptious! The directions were well written and easy to follow. The homemade breadcrumbs definitely make it. I added a little onion powder, salt and pepper to the breadcrumbs and used veggie stock instead of the pasta water. Yummmm
I added a pinch of red pepper it adds just a bit of zing.
I made this on a Tuesday night and it was simple and quick. It tastes even better and leftovers for lunch the next day.
Love this recipe! I use about 1 cup of breadcrumbs rather than making my own. I also roast the onions with the cauliflower to flavour it but then leave them out of the pasta since I'm not a big onion fan.
This was really good. I enjoyed making it, and it looked great done, I will definitely cook this again.
This was so yummy! I used more Parmesan, and the lemon zest was a great touch and really improved the dish. Highly recommended for a healthy pasta dinner!
Made this for dinner tonight with whole wheat pasta and bread crumbs. Really simple, delicious, and healthy.
THIS IS DELICIOUS. Fresh chopped basil and lemon zest add something nice.
This is really delicious. Lemon zest and fresh chopped basil add a fresh touch.
A keeper! I add roasted chicken, use Italian style breadcrumbs, and mash up the roasted garlic instead of leaving them whole in the final dish. Yum!
This is SOOOOOOOOOOO good. Add a little lemon zest and lemon juice (or lemon oil) when roasting the cauliflower. But really - so yummy