White Bean Carbonara Pasta Sauce | Vegan

This easy vegan carbonara recipe is just as creamy as the classic pasta sauce, but way healthier as it’s made without cheese, eggs or heavy cream, but with white beans and smoked tofu instead of bacon! Perfect for lunch or dinner!

Vegan White Bean Carbonara Pasta Sauce

Who would have thought that you can make a delicious vegan pasta sauce based on white beans and cashews that is also just as creamy as the traditional pasta dish? It actually works wonderfully! The beans not only make the sauce more protein-rich, but also wonderfully thick, smooth, and just perfectly creamy!

If you’ve already tried my recipe for creamy mushroom pasta with béchamel sauce, then you know you won’t taste the beans at all!

The great thing about this recipe is also that the dish can be made in less than 25 minutes without much effort! Not only can you serve the white bean carbonara sauce with fettuccine, spaghetti, or other vegan pasta of your choice, but you can also serve it with vegetables! For a low carb or keto version, you can use vegetable noodles like zoodles, carrot noodles, or sweet potato spaghetti!

What is carbonara?

Classic spaghetti carbonara is an Italian pasta dish traditionally made with cheese, eggs and bacon. However, in some recipes also other non-vegan ingredients such as heavy cream, milk, parmesan cheese or ham are used. Of course, for this vegan version you don’t need dairy products or bacon, because it‘s made with simple plant-based ingredients that are also much healthier!

• White beans: rinsed and drained.
• Cashews: or cashew butter or dairy-free cooking cream
• Vegetable broth
• Canola oil: or other oil for frying
• Onion: diced
• Garlic cloves: chopped
• Seasonings: nutritional yeast flakes, chili or paprika powder, salt and pepper
• Lemon juice: optional
• Smoked tofu: or coconut bacon
• Pasta: use any (gluten-free) pasta you like or try my Homemade Vegan Pasta Recipe.
• Toppings (optional): vegan parmesan, fresh parsley and basil

Ingredients for Vegan Pasta Sauce

How to make White Bean Carbonara Pasta

As always, I recommend checking out the recipe video and this step-by-step instruction first. Then you can find the full recipe with exact measurements in the recipe card below!

Step 1: Cook the cashews and pasta.

For the sauce, first boil the cashews in the vegetable broth until soft, about 10-12 minutes. (Alternatively, you can soak the cashews overnight or sub cashew butter).

Meanwhile, cook the pasta in a pot of salted water according to package directions until ‘al dente’. Also, rinse and drain the beans.

Step 2: Sauté the onions, garlic and tofu.

Meanwhile, sauté the onions and garlic for the sauce. Then remove and wipe the pan with paper towels.

Next, sauté the tofu cubes briefly. Then remove and set aside.

Step 3: Blend the white bean carbonara sauce until creamy.

Place the softened cashews, including the vegetable broth, in a blender. Add beans, sautéed onions and garlic, along with nutritional yeast flakes and chili or paprika powder. Blend until creamy, adding a little water to desired consistency if necessary. Season to taste with salt, pepper and lemon juice.

Step 4: Serve the carbonara pasta

Drain the pasta and mix with the sauce. Add the tofu cubes as well and garnish the pasta with vegan parmesan, fresh parsley and basil as desired. Serve immediately and enjoy!

Recipe Notes & Variations

• Cashews: If you don’t want to prepare cashew cream (cashews + vegetable broth), you can use 7 oz (200 g) dairy-free cooking cream instead, such as soy or oat cuisine + about 1/2 cup (100 ml) vegetable broth (or until desired consistency).
• Tofu: The smoked tofu is used as a ham or bacon substitute and gives the dish a great classic carbonara flavor. Alternatively, you can prepare coconut bacon or simply omit it completely.
• Vegetables: If you like, you can sauté/steam fresh vegetables such as spinach, savoy cabbage, kale, Brussels sprouts, broccoli, mushrooms, carrots, zucchini, etc. and serve with the creamy pasta.
• Protein: For even more protein, you can serve the pasta with cooked legumes like chickpeas, lentils or beans or another meat alternative like vegan meatballs.

How can I store leftover pasta sauce?

Leftover White Bean Carbonara Pasta Sauce can be kept in a sealed container and stored in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. Then simply reheat in a saucepan or microwave and add a little water or unsweetened plant milk to thin it out if needed. You can also freeze the sauce.

This White Bean Carbonara Pasta Sauce is:

• Vegan
• Plant-based
• Gluten-free
• Healthy
• Creamy
• Versatile
• Quick and easy to make
• Incredibly delicious!

More easy vegan pasta recipes to try

• Sweet Potato Pasta Sauce
• Vegan Mac and Cheese
• Cauliflower Alfredo Pasta 
• Lentil Bolognese
• Spinach and Mushroom Pasta
• Creamy Lemon Pasta
• Roasted Red Pepper Pasta Sauce
• Lentil Mushroom Ragu
• Creamed Spinach Pasta
• Creamy Tomato Pasta
• Pumpkin Alfredo Pasta
• Vegan Broccoli Mac and Cheese
• Lentil Zucchini Lasagna

If you try this easy vegan fettuccine alfredo alla carbonara recipe, feel free to leave me a comment and a star rating! And if you share a photo of your pasta dish on Instagram, please tag me @biancazapatka and use the hashtag #biancazapatka because I love seeing your creations! Happy cooking! 🙂

Vegan Carbonara Pasta

Author: Bianca Zapatka

This easy vegan carbonara recipe is just as creamy as the classic pasta sauce, but way healthier as it’s made without cheese, eggs or heavy cream, but with white beans and smoked tofu instead of bacon! Perfect for lunch or dinner!

5 von 4 Bewertungen

Print Pin Review

Prep Time 10 minutes mins

Cook Time 20 minutes mins

Course Lunch & Dinner, Main Course, Pasta

Cuisine Italian

Servings 4 Servings

Ingredients

• 12.3 oz (350 g) fettuccine or other pasta
• 1x14 oz can (400 g) white beans 8.8 oz (250 g) drained weight
• ½ cup (75 g) cashews or cashew butter or dairy-free cooking cream, *see notes
• 1 cup (240 ml) vegetable broth a little more if needed
• 3 tsp canola oil
• 1 large onion diced
• 3-4 garlic cloves chopped
• 2 ½ tbsp nutritional yeast flakes
• ½ tsp chili or paprika powder optional
• salt and pepper to taste
• 2-3 tsp lemon juice optional
• 7 oz (200 g) smoked tofu cut into small cubes, or coconut bacon, *see notes

Topping (optional)

• 2-3 tbsp vegan parmesan
• fresh parsley and basil

Instructions 

*Note: Check out the recipe video + step-by-step pictures above!

• For the sauce, add the cashews and the vegetable broth to a pot. Bring to a boil and cook for about 10-12 minutes until the cashews are soft. (Alternatively, soak the cashews overnight beforehand or sub cashew butter).
• In the meantime, cook the pasta in a pot of salted water according to package directions until al dente.
• Meanwhile, heat half of the oil in a small frying pan and sauté the onions for about 2-3 minutes. Then add the garlic and sauté for a few seconds. Then remove and briefly wipe the pan with a paper towel.
• Heat the remaining oil in the pan and fry the tofu cubes for 2-3 minutes. Remove and set aside.
• Put the softened cashews including the vegetable broth in a blender. Add beans, sautéed onions and garlic, as well as nutritional yeast flakes and chili or paprika powder and blend until creamy, adding a little water to desired consistency if necessary. Season to taste with salt, pepper and lemon juice.
• Drain the pasta and combine with the sauce. Add the smoked tofu cubes as well and garnish the pasta with vegan parmesan, fresh parsley and basil if desired.
• Serve immediately and enjoy!

Notes

• Pasta: Use any pasta you like or try my Homemade Vegan Pasta Recipe.
• Cashews: If you don't want to prepare cashew cream (cashews + vegetable broth), you can use 7 oz (200 g) dairy-free cooking cream instead, such as soy or oat cuisine + about ½ cup (100 ml) vegetable broth (or until desired consistency).
• Tofu: The smoked tofu is used as a ham or bacon substitute and gives the dish a great classic carbonara flavor. Alternatively, you can prepare coconut bacon or simply omit it completely.
• Vegetables: If you like, you can sauté/steam fresh vegetables such as spinach, savoy cabbage, kale, Brussels sprouts, broccoli, mushrooms, carrots, zucchini, etc. and serve with the creamy pasta.
• Protein: For more protein, you can serve the pasta with cooked legumes like chickpeas, lentils or beans or another meat alternative like vegan meatballs.
• Storage: Leftover pasta sauce can be kept in a sealed container and stored in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. Then simply reheat in a saucepan or microwave and add a little water or unsweetened plant milk to thin it out if needed. You can also freeze the sauce.
• More information about the recipe are mentioned in the blog post above!

Nutrition is calculated automatically and should be used as estimate.

Did you make this recipe?Mention @biancazapatka or tag #biancazapatka!

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