Hello June! Well, tomorrow anyway. That means, summery comfort food is coming at you. This vegan bruschetta pasta is the perfect summer time pasta dish. We all need one of those, am I right? I took all aspects of the yummy appetizer and turned it into one of my favorite pasta dishes of all time. Normally, when you make bruschetta, you rub garlic on the toasted bread slices. Then top with tomatoes, basil and often balsamic vinegar. So, I made a pureed garlic sauce to toss with the pasta first. Then I sauteed cherry tomatoes with balsamic vinegar until they burst open.
Mix all that together and prepare for something truly magical. The vegan bruschetta pasta is slightly spicy from the garlic. Slightly sweet from the tomatoes and slightly tangy from the vinegar. Add fresh basil and oh man! You’ll want to make this all summer long. I’ll be honest, summer is my least favorite season, but it’s dishes like these that ease the pain.
I love how easy this dish is, and that you only need 8 ingredients, one of which is reserved pasta water. So, I’m not sure if that even counts. Here’s another fact about me that might surprise you. I actually hate tomatoes. I can not eat just raw tomatoes, and always remove them from things. However, these burst, juicy, adorable tomatoes really do it for me. This pasta is one of the only ways I will eat tomatoes. I bet you can get even the pickiest eaters to get in on this meal.
There are a lot of different things I have see put on bruschetta. This pasta just has the basics. So, if you are feeling daring, feel free to add any of your favorite toppings. I think anything that would go well on top of a piece of bruschetta will go great in this dish. Don’t forget the fresh basil though. That is a must have!
Vegan Bruschetta Pasta
Ingredients
- 1/3 Cup Garlic, chopped
- 3 Tablespoons Olive oil, divided
- 12 Ounces Pasta, gluten-free or regular
- 1/4 Cup Reserved pasta water
- 1 Pound Grape or cherry tomatoes
- 3 Tablespoons Balsamic vinegar
- 1/3 Cup Fresh basil, chopped
- 1/4 teaspoon Red pepper flakes (optional)
- Salt and Pepper to taste
Instructions
- Add 1/2 a tablespoon of olive oil to a large non-stick skillet. Heat on medium high. Then add the garlic. Saute, reducing heat as needed until the garlic has soften. About 2-3 minutes. Remove from heat and put the garlic in a food processor or blender. Set aside to cool.
- Now, cook the pasta according to package directions. Making sure to save some of the pasta water before you drain the pasta. Once you have saved some water, drain when the pasta is done.
- While the pasta is cooking, heat another 1/2 tablespoon of olive oil in the skillet you sauteed the garlic in. Then add the tomatoes. Saute, reducing heat as needed until the tomatoes start to burst. About 5-7 minutes. Season with a pinch of salt and pepper.
- You can press the tomatoes down with a spatula or spoon to help them burst. Then add the balsamic vinegar to the tomatoes.
- Continue to saute for another 2-4 minutes or until the balsamic thickens slightly. Remove from heat.
- Then make the garlic puree. Add the 2 remaining tablespoons of olive oil and a pinch of salt and pepper to the food processor or blender with the sauteed garlic.
- Begin to pulse, then drizzle in the reserved pasta water. Blend until smooth.
- Add the pasta back to the pot after you have drained it. Then pour the garlic sauce over the pasta. Toss to coat.
- Then add the balsamic and tomatoes to the pot. Toss everything together. Then add the red pepper and basil. Toss again, then taste and adjust seasoning. You may need more salt. Serve!
Nutrition
Lauren never disappoints! Such an easy and delicious recipe! The garlic and balsamic flavors are heavenly when combined. I used a tube of pre-minced garlic since I’m not sure how many cloves it would take to make 1/3 of a cup of garlic. I added vegan parmesan as well, but the recipe is so good as written that it really doesn’t need anything else!
Would this make a good leftover lunch served cold if you add a little olive oil to keep it from sticking together?
Yes! I think that would be awesome!
When the recipe says salt and pepper, listen. It needs a lot of salt. I added garlic salt at the end too. It was good once I got the flavoring right. Also doubled the basil. Thanks for a great recipe.
So good! I added asparagus and gave my cheese loving fam a sprinkle of shredded mozzarella and parm. Will make again and again. Thank you!
This tasted amazing and was such a treat with tomatoes and basil from the garden.
Just made this and it was great! Agree with above that you can use minced garlic as a shortcut. Will definitely make again!
Heavenly! An absolute triumph! My husband and I loved it. Summer on a plate!
Absolutely delicious 🤤
I made a creamy version and just added Cashews to the Garlic blend. I love this! Thank you so much!!!
This recipe had all my favorite Italian elements; garlic, olive oil, basil, tomatoes and pasta. Simple and elegant, and above all else, delicious! Great recipe! We’ll have this again. Thanks for all the great recipes!
This is such a wonderful recipe! Quick, easy, nutritious and off the charts delicious! I’m planning to make it for dinner tonight. This is probably the 4th or 5th time I’ve made it in the past 3 months or so and every time my husband raves about it. Just had to take a minute to say thank you for this and the many other exceptional recipes. The garlic sauce in this is something I never would have thought of it and it just makes this dish sing. Thank you!
this was pretty good! I wish I had something else to add to it, maybe spinach? But the flavor was great. I used too much pasta water in the sauce or I just underestimated the amount of pre-minced garlic. So I added about a tablespoon or so of vegan butter to the food processor which helped thicken it up a bit. I also added some vegan parmesan mixed in and then on top. Thanks!