Roasted beetroot pasta makes a deliciously simple vegetarian meal or side dish. It contains a handful of ingredients and is incredibly easy to put together. Your mac’n cheese never looked so good!
Today on the blog a dish that’s not only quick to make it’s full of colour and flavour – roasted beetroot pasta.
When it comes to quick and easy meals pasta is usually my first choice. It cooks in minutes and can be combined with a variety of ingredients, not necessarily including tomatoes. Or a heavy cheese sauce.
Beetroot can be prepared using different methods but for this pasta recipe I decided to roast it. To speed things up I peeled the beets and cut into wedges before popping in the oven. I wanted the beetroot to cook quickly and evenly.
To make things even simpler I roasted the beetroot along with garlic and red onion. After about 30 minutes in the oven the vegetables are pureed along with the fromage frais and some of the water from cooking the pasta into a rich and creamy sauce. Simply stir into your pasta and serve!
Equipment you’ll need
- Kitchen scales/measuring cup
- Cutting board, knife and vegetable peeler
- Oven tray and spatula
- Pot for cooking the pasta
- Blender and large spoon
How to make beetroot pasta: step-by-step
1.Preheat the oven to 200 C. Peel the beets and cut into wedges. Place in your tray along with the red onion and garlic cloves, season and drizzle with about 2 tablespoons of oil.
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2. Roast in the centre of the oven for 30 minutes or until the beetroot is tender. Halfway through stir the vegetables, remove the garlic from the oven and set aside (it needs less roasting time than the beets and onion). Boil the pasta according to packet instructions (reserve at least 1/2 cup of water from boiling the pasta).
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3. Combine the beets, onion, garlic, 2 tablespoons of the fromage frais and water from cooking the pasta (start with 1/3 cup and add more if needed later) and puree. Season to taste.
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4. Combine the cooked pasta with the beetroot sauce, add 3 tablespoons of finely grated parmesan, season to taste and stir thoroughly. Heat up and add a bit more water if needed and serve immediately.
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Another easy roasted beetroot pasta recipe you might like is beetroot and feta pasta salad.
Top tips for making beet pasta recipe
- The sauce: You could use (low fat) creme fraiche instead of the fromage frais if you prefer. Add the water gradually to get the consistency you want.
- The pasta: Use any pasta shapes you like.
- Best served immediately. Leftovers can be refrigerated for up to 3 days. You may have to add a splash of water (and adjust the seasoning) when reheating the pasta.
- Freeze individual portions in an airtight container for up to 3 months. Alternatively freeze just the sauce.
What to serve with beetroot pasta
This healthy pasta dish makes a great vegetarian lunch. I like to serve it with a handful of peppery, slightly nutty tasting arugula (rocket leaves) with a drizzle of oil and seasoning but any simple salad would do. Grilled zucchini, cooked or steamed broccoli (or better yet, broccolini), asparagus or green beans are also good choices.
More vegetarian pasta recipe ideas
- Creamy Spinach Mac and Cheese (Healthy)
- Healthy Broccoli Pasta Alfredo with Ricotta
- Avocado Pesto Sauce with Parsley
Check out also this collection of over 12 healthy vegetarian pasta meals.
Keep in touch
If you make this beetroot pasta recipe I’d love to know how it turned out for you. Let me know in the comments below, thanks!
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Roasted Beetroot Pasta Recipe
Ingredients
- 250 g raw macaroni or another pasta, enough for 4, reserve at least 1/2 of water from boiling the pasta
- 200 g beetroot peeled weight
- 1 red onion peeled, cut into 6 wedges
- 2 garlic cloves whole, peeled
- 2 tbsp fromage frais
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- Sea salt and pepper to taste
- 3 tbsp parmesan cheese finely grated, ensure it's vegetarian
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400 F/ 200 C/ gas mark 6. Whilst the vegetables are in the oven boil the pasta in salted water according to package instructions. Drain and reserve at least 1/2 cup of the water from cooking.
- Peel the beetroot, cut into wedges and place in your oven dish. Add the onion and garlic, season and drizzle with 2 tablespoons of oil. Bake for 30 minutes or until the beetroot is tender. Halfway through remove the garlic from the oven and stir the beets and onion. Puree the vegetables along with the garlic, fromage frais and 1/3 cup of the water from cooking the pasta (you can add more later if needed). Season to taste and set aside.
- Combine the beetroot sauce with the pasta and grated parmesan, stir, adjust the seasoning (and add more water if needed) and serve.
Notes
- The sauce: You could use (low fat) creme fraiche instead of the fromage frais if you prefer. Add the water gradually to get the consistency you want.
- The pasta: Use any pasta shapes you like.
- Best served immediately. Leftovers can be refrigerated for up to 3 days. You may have to add a splash of water (and adjust the seasoning) when reheating the pasta.
- Freeze individual portions in an airtight container for up to 3 months. Alternatively freeze just the sauce.
Nutrition
Recipe link parties
I am sharing this easy beets pasta sauce with Recipe of the Week, Meat Free Mondays, and #CookBlogShare.
Oooh yum! We all adore beetroot and I love your twist on a classic meal. Thank you for sharing with #CookBlogShare x
Thank you Kirsty:)
How did i guess when i saw beetroot it would be your recipe. Love all your ideas for it and this looks so vibrant and bright.
I am becoming predictable! But I do love beetroot so much, it produces such vibrant looking dishes I find it so very appealing:)
The beetroot sauce with this pasta looks amazing – so vibrant and such a creative way to use beetroot. I do love all your beetroot recipes Monika!
Thank you Corina! I have to say I like the beetroot for its flavour as well as its colour – it’s not a vegetable you can hide in a stew:)
Wow, what a brilliant colour! This is a really good idea for using beetroot, and would make a great halloween recipe! #recipeoftheweek
Thank you! Yes, it would be great on halloween, why didn’t I think of that!