Creamy Cauliflower Chicken Baked Pasta {Gluten-Free, Dairy-Free}
This recipe is designed to be adapted to your allergy needs. If you have no food allergies and just want a delicious cauliflower sauce, use milk and parmesan cheese. I personally can eat butter, so I use that along with the cashew cream and no parmesan cheese. The soy sauce adds a delicious savoriness to the sauce! For the topping, I use a homemade dairy-free parmesan cheese and gluten-free breadcrumbs. Again, if you can eat hard cheese, use regular parmesan if you like.
This recipe is designed to be adapted to your allergy needs. If you have no food allergies and just want a delicious cauliflower sauce, use milk and parmesan cheese. I personally can eat butter, so I use that along with the cashew cream and no parmesan cheese. The soy sauce adds a delicious savoriness to the sauce! For the topping, I use a homemade dairy-free parmesan cheese and gluten-free breadcrumbs. Again, if you can eat hard cheese, use regular parmesan if you like.
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- salt & pepper
- 3-4 cloves garlic minced
- 1 medium onion chopped
- 2-3 cloves garlic minced
- 1/2 cup shallots chopped
- 2 tablespoons vegan butter or olive oil
- 1/2 cup cremini mushrooms chopped
- 1 head cauliflower, chopped roughly into 2-inch pieces
- 2 cups chicken stock + 1 cup for finishing the sauce
- 1/3 cup whole raw cashews + 1/2 cup chicken stock (or 1/2 cup milk)
- 1/2 teaspoon gluten-free soy sauce
- 1/4 cup parmesan cheese optional
- 2 tablespoons vegan or regular butter
- 3 medium (or 2 large) chicken breasts
- 8 oz cremini mushrooms chopped
- 1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves chopped
- 1/2 cup dry white wine (or chicken stock)
- 12 oz (1 1/2 boxes) gluten-free tagliatelle noodles
- 3/4 cup frozen peas defrosted
- 1/4 cup italian flat leaf parsley finely chopped
- 1/2 cup gluten-free panko bread crumbs
- 1/4 cup dairy-free parmesan* (or regular parmesan)
- 3 tablespoons vegan or regular butter melted
- Carbohydrate 30.1218840136887 g
- Cholesterol 5.50000000700806 mg
- Fat 9.30303500542403 g
- Fiber 5.72196999391025 g
- Protein 11.3483400054059 g
- Saturated Fat 2.14008070182869 g
- Serving Size 1 1 recipe (249g)
- Sodium 805.739900137572 mg
- Sugar 24.3999140197785 g
- Trans Fat 0.551121300298842 g
- Calories 237 calories
Step-by-step
- Cover the cashews, if using, in boiling water and let them sit for 15 minutes while you prep the other ingredients.
- In a medium saucepan or dutch oven, heat the butter or olive oil over medium-high heat. Add the shallots and mushrooms and cook until softened, 5-7 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for 30 seconds. Add the cauliflower and 2 cups chicken stock. Bring the liquid to a boil, reduce to a simmer then cover. Cook covered for 10-15 minutes, until the cauliflower is very soft.
- Drain and rinse the cashews. Place them in a high-speed blender with 1/2 cup of chicken stock. Blend (I use the whole juice setting) until completely smooth. When the cauliflower is cooked, pour the mixture into the blender. Carefully blend on low until the mixture is totally smooth. Pour back into the pan and add the soy sauce and parmesan cheese, if using. Add the remaining cup of chicken stock and stir to combine. Season to taste with more salt if needed and plenty of freshly cracked pepper.
- Preheat the oven to 450F. Butter or grease a 13x9-inch baking dish.
- Heat the butter and olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Season the chicken breasts generously with salt and pepper. Add the chicken and cook on each side for 5-6 minutes, until cooked through. Transfer to a plate to cool, then shred the chicken into bite-sized pieces.
- In the now empty pan, add another tablespoon of butter/olive oil if needed. Add the onion and mushrooms. Cook until very soft, about 7-9 minutes. Add the garlic and thyme. Cook for 30 seconds then add the wine and simmer until it evaporates, about 2 minutes. Remove from the heat.
- Meanwhile, cook the noodles until just undercooked, about 5 minutes in salted boiling water. Drain and lightly rinse the noodles to remove some of the starch.
- Mix the cauliflower sauce, noodles, shredded chicken, mushroom mixture, peas and parsley together. Pour into the baking dish. Mix together the topping ingredients, then sprinkle over the top. Bake uncovered for about 25 minutes, until hot and bubbling. Let sit 5 minutes before serving. Enjoy!
Standard baked pastas rely on heavy cream or roux-based bechamel to coat the noodles, but this version builds body through puréed brassicas and emulsified raw nuts. Simmering the brassica head in chicken stock softens its cellular walls, allowing a high-speed blender to shatter the fibers into a velvety matrix without dairy. Soaking the raw nuts in boiling water for fifteen minutes hydrates them so their natural fats blend smoothly with stock rather than separating. A splash of soy sauce introduces free glutamates, compensating for the missing umami normally supplied by aged dairy. Searing the poultry breasts over medium-high heat for five to six per side locks in moisture before shredding. Undercooking the gluten-free tagliatelle noodles by stopping the boil at five minutes prevents structural collapse during the twenty-five-minute bake at 450 degrees Fahrenheit. The dry white wine acts as an acid, cutting through the dense purée and balancing the earthy cremini mushrooms.
