Rich and creamy vegan pasta bake that feeds a crowd AND you can make it in advance so it’s perfect for a dinner party!
Well I never, doesn’t it look exactly like there’s a thick layer of cheese on top of that vegan pasta bake you see before you?
Well it’s not! It’s white sauce. Isn’t that some magic right there?
I wanted to make this pasta bake with a lentil bolognese sauce, but at the last minute decided to mix the bolognese with some cashew cream for a creamy sauce.
And then the creamy pasta is topped with a white sauce that bakes to look just like cheese! It’s too good.
It’s definitely rich. But it makes a perfect meal to feed a crowd.
There are a few steps involved but it’s actually quite simple and the prep for this is only around 70 minutes. Then it bakes for 20 minutes, so the entire meal is ready in 90 minutes.
And if you love this pasta bake then you’ll also love our vegan baked ziti so check that out too.
How To Make Vegan Pasta Bake
You will find full instructions and measurements in the recipe card at the bottom of the post. This is a summary of the process to go along with the process photos.
- Put the pasta on to cook. When it’s cooked, drain it, cover it (to prevent it from drying out) and set aside.
- Prepare your bolognese sauce. Add chopped onion and crushed garlic to a pot with olive oil and fry until softened. Add sliced mushrooms and soy sauce. Cover the pot for a minute and allow the mushrooms to release their water. Then remove the lid from the pot and let the water from the mushrooms cook off a little. Add tomato paste, lentils and chopped tomato. Bring to a simmer. Add a little light brown sugar to balance out the flavors. Add salt and pepper to taste.
- Prepare your cashew cream. Add raw cashews, lemon juice, water and salt to the blender jug and blend until smooth.
- Add the cashew cream to your bolognese sauce and mix it in.
- Then add the cooked pasta and mix it all in together.
- Prepare your white sauce. Add vegan butter to a saucepan and let it melt and start to sizzle just a little. Add all purpose flour and stir it in quickly, then add coconut milk and vegetable stock and whisk it in. Then switch to a wooden spoon and keep stirring while you bring it to the boil. Once it boils keep stirring for about another 4 minutes until it’s noticeably thickened. Remove from the heat and add ground black pepper, dijon mustard, nutritional yeast and sea salt.
- Place the pasta and bolognese mix into a 9×13 oven-safe dish and smooth down.
- Pour the white sauce over the top and smooth down.
- Bake uncovered at 430°F for 20 minutes until golden on top.
Ingredient Notes
Bolognese Sauce:
The bolognese sauce is a simple mix of onion, garlic, olive oil, mushrooms, soy sauce, tomato paste, lentils, chopped tomato (canned), a little light brown sugar for flavor balance and salt and pepper to taste.
- The mushrooms – we used white button mushrooms but cremini mushrooms (baby bella, portobellini) would be great too.
- The lentils – we used one 15-ounce can of brown lentils (drained). You can use canned lentils or just use 1 and ½ cups cooked lentils.
This bolognese sauce is totally delicious as is. And if you want to go with it exactly as is, you definitely can.
But I was inspired to make a simple cashew cream and mix it in for a creamy bolognese sauce.
The Cashew Cream:
- The cashews – we didn’t soak the cashews first since we didn’t find it necessary in our Vitamix. However, if you think your blender may struggle with it, then add the cashews to a bowl, pour over boiling hot water from the kettle and leave them to soak for 15 minutes to soften. Then drain and rinse.
The White Sauce:
The white sauce that looks exactly like a thick layer of cheese on top of this vegan pasta bake is just like your classic bechamel sauce, but made with vegan butter, all purpose flour, coconut milk, vegetable stock and then some black pepper, dijon mustard and sea salt added for flavoring and nutritional yeast added for cheesiness!
- Vegan butter – can be replaced with olive oil but we enjoyed the buttery flavor added to this sauce.
- Coconut milk – we used one 14-ounce can (400ml) full fat, unsweetened coconut milk. If you avoid coconut then you can switch this for 1 and ⅔ cups (400ml) soy milk or other creamy non-dairy milk.
- Nutritional yeast – we used nutritional yeast for added cheesy flavor, but you can omit it if you prefer.
Serving Suggestions
This recipe results in a very rich, very satisfying vegan pasta bake that will definitely impress some guests if you had to serve it at a dinner party.
It also serves at least 8 people so it definitely feeds a crowd. If you’re wanting to serve it with some sides then a good vegan salad like a vegan Greek salad or a vegan chickpea salad would be wonderful on the side. Some vegan garlic bread would be great too. And of course lots of good red wine.
Make Ahead
Another thing that makes this a really good choice for a dinner party is that you can make it in advance. So you can get it all ready in the dish, cover it in foil and put it in the fridge and then 20 minutes before you need to serve it, put it in the oven to bake.
So you could literally make it the night before. Perfect for a stress-free dinner party. All you’d have to do on the night is make the salad, pop this in the oven and open the wine.
Now that sounds like the way to socialize!
Storing and Freezing
Leftovers keep really well in the fridge for 4-5 days and can be reheated in the microwave.
It’s also freezer friendly for up to 3 months if you’d like to freeze it.
More Vegan Pasta Recipes
- Vegan Pesto Pasta
- Cheesy Garlic Vegan Alfredo
- Vegan Cannelloni
- Baked Vegan Mac and Cheese
- Vegan Stuffed Shells
- Vegan Lasagna
Did you make this recipe? Be sure to leave a comment and rating below!
Vegan Pasta Bake
Ingredients
For the Pasta:
- 16 ounces Penne Pasta (450g) Dry Weight
For the Bolognese Sauce:
- 1 Medium Onion White, Yellow or Brown, Chopped
- 1 teaspoon Crushed Garlic
- 1 Tablespoon Olive Oil
- 5 cups White Button Mushrooms (480g) Sliced
- 1 Tablespoon Soy Sauce
- ½ cup Tomato Paste (130g)
- 15 ounce Can Brown Lentils (1 can) or 1 and ½ cups cooked brown lentils
- 28 ounces Canned Chopped Tomato (800g)
- 1-2 Tablespoons Light Brown Sugar
- Salt and Pepper to taste
For the Cashew Cream:
- 1 cup Raw Cashews (150g)
- 1 Tablespoon Lemon Juice
- ½ cup Water (120ml)
- ½ teaspoon Salt
For the White Sauce:
- 3 Tablespoons Vegan Butter
- 2 Tablespoons All Purpose Flour
- 14 ounces Coconut Milk (400ml) Full Fat, Canned, Unsweetened
- ⅓ cup Vegetable Stock (80ml) or Broth
- 1 teaspoon Black Pepper
- 1 teaspoon Dijon Mustard
- ¼ cup Nutritional Yeast (15g)
- Sea Salt to taste
Instructions
- Put the pasta on to cook while you prepare the vegetables for the bolognese sauce. When the pasta is cooked, drain it, cover it (to prevent it from drying out) and set aside.
- Prepare your bolognese sauce. Add the onion and garlic to a pot with the olive oil and fry until softened. Then add in the sliced mushrooms and soy sauce. Cover the pot for a minute and allow the mushrooms to release their water. Then remove the lid from the pot and let the water from the mushrooms cook off a little. Add in the tomato paste, lentils and chopped tomato. Bring to a simmer. Add the sugar to balance out the flavors and add salt and pepper to taste.
- Prepare your cashew cream. Add the cashews, lemon juice, water and salt to the blender jug and blend until smooth.
- Add the cashew cream to your bolognese sauce and mix it in. Then add your pasta and mix it all in together.
- Now prepare your white sauce. Add the vegan butter to a saucepan and let it melt and start to sizzle just a little. Add in the flour and stir it quickly, then add in the coconut milk and vegetable stock and whisk it very quickly to get rid of the lumps. Then switch to a wooden spoon and keep stirring while you bring it to the boil. Once it boils keep stirring for about another 4 minutes until thickened. Then remove from heat and add in the black pepper, dijon mustard, nutritional yeast and sea salt.
- Preheat the oven to 430°F (220°C).
- Place the pasta and bolognese mix into a rectangular oven-safe dish and smooth down.
- Pour the white sauce over the top and smooth down.
- Bake uncovered for 20 minutes until golden on top.
Notes
- The cashews – we didn’t soak the cashews first since we didn’t find it necessary in our Vitamix. However, if you think your blender may struggle with it, then add the cashews to a bowl, pour over boiling hot water from the kettle and leave them to soak for 15 minutes to soften. Then drain and rinse.
- Make ahead. If you want to make this in advance then complete all the steps except for baking it in the oven. Keep the dish covered in the fridge and when you’re ready, pop it in the oven to bake. You may need a few extra minutes baking time to account for the dish being cold to begin with.
- Storing and freezing. Leftovers keep very well in the fridge for 4-5 days. It’s also freezer friendly for up to 3 months.
Made this tonight for my wife and I, really flavorsome and made 4 meals worth for us! Very cost effective too! Had it with steamed broccoli and carrots, really delicious and would make again!
Awesome! Thanks for the amazing review Nicola!
I cooked this recipe for the family and it was greeted with surprise and much praise, particularly as I’m not a regular cook. One problem however was that I prepared the dish a day ahead and then baked for 20 minutes. This wasn’t long enough. It eventually required nearer 40 mins. It would be helpful if this was added to the section ‘Make ahead’. Otherwise it’s a great recipe.
Hi Lou, I wonder if your oven may be running a little cold, because usually just a few extra minutes would be enough to account for the dish being fridge cold when it goes into the oven. I use an oven thermometer as a very handy kitchen tool because it really helps when you know exactly the temperature your oven is reaching inside. Really glad the recipe came out well though! 🙂
Was having a party and one of my friends is vegan so I made this and ate most of it myself! Really delicious recipe!
Haha that’s awesome Ciara! Thanks so much for the wonderful review.
My son is allergic to cashews and peanuts. Any alternative? Thank you
Hi there, you could absolutely just leave off the cashew cream entirely, it would be just as delicious. 🙂
Are mushrooms crucial to this recipe or can I substitute for other veggies?
Not crucial at all, feel free to try it with other veggies.
Hi Alison and Jaye
I so much enjoyed reading your recipes in preparation for a lunch with some friends who are not vegan. I want them to experience delicious vegan food.So I will make your vegan bake plus your cupcakes. What a talent for cooking you have and many thanks for posting all the excellent information.
Thanks Simone! Hope it all comes out great and your friends love the food!
Not one for commenting on recipes usually but wow this is amazing! We wanted to eat it before we had even done the white sauce! Made a few changes, added in carrot and zucchini with the mushrooms, and instead of lentils we used jackfruit. Passata instead of the chopped tomatoes. Tastes exactly like a tuna pasta bake sauce we used to have back in the UK before going plant based. YUM! Definite keeper…thank you 🙂
Awesome Rachel! Thanks so much for the amazing review!
Can I add some vegetables to it?
Vegetables like green peas,sweetCorn or broccoli…
And,follow all the steps you mentioned.
Sure!
I am not a vegan but made this recipe yesterday and it was incredible. I made it in the morning and cooked it at night and it turned out perfectly. Amazing flavor, so creamy and so delicious. Will definitely make it again!
Fantastic! Thanks so much for the awesome review Libby!
Made this tonight, and I’m SO glad I did! This recipe is incredible! Made some adjustments with what I had, but the flavours and textures were great, and the cooking process was smooth.
I used a drained can of chickpeas instead of lentils. And instead of 2 cans of chopped tomatoes, I used one can of chopped tomatoes and one 500g carton of tomato passata. And half courgettes and half mushrooms. Also marmite as a substitution for yeast flakes.
Can’t get over how cheesy tasting and creamy it all was. 5/5 stars.
Thank you! Now to freeze half the batch. 😀
Thank you so much! So happy to hear that! 🙂
Oops. Here’s my rating.
Thanks so much Mari!
I’ve made this vegan pasta bake 3 times and I just love love love it and so does the family. I made it tonight to celebrate one year since converting to eating vegan. You make it easy with recipes like this! The only change I made was to substitute soy milk for the coconut milk.
It’s worth taking the time to make this as the results are worth it. Thank you.