Pasta with Cauliflower, Sun Dried Tomatoes and Pine Nuts

If there is one thing I'm good at it is making a quick meal out of things that seem to be lying around in the cupboard or filling up the fridge. I can say no less for this simple and fast pasta recipe.

This fantastic pasta with cauliflower, sun dried tomatoes and pine nuts is a quick and healthy pasta that is great for a week night meal. The hearty pasta is an amazing contrast to the yummy cauliflower and tomatoes with just a hint of garlic and crunch of pine nuts.  

Have a few pine nuts lying around from making that special pesto? Jar of delicious and amazing sun dried tomatoes that you're not sure what to do with this rest of? Half a box a pasta from last month's Italian kick?

Pine nuts seem really exotic to me and elevate this dish from just an ordinary pasta into something extraordinary. They come from a special variety of evergreen tree. Growing on the underside of the cone they have to be laboriously dried, harvested and winnowed. Crunchy, mild and sweet, pine nuts are an experience all of their own.

Sun dried tomatoes are so full of flavor. You only have to add a small amount to this pasta dish to make big impact. These little red rockets just burst in your mouth when you bite into them. They taste like all the sun and intense flavors of summer in one little bite.

Health Benefits

The cauliflower in this recipe is so delicious and healthy. It extends the pasta and balances a high carbohydrate food with a very low carbohydrate food for the best in taste and in health. 

Cauliflower is an excellent source of vitamins and minerals, containing some of almost every vitamin and mineral that you need. It is also very high in antioxidants and fiber but very low in calories. So enjoy!

Directions

To make this easy pasta simply Cook your pasta according to package directions or boil for about 11 minutes or until pasta is al dente.

While pasta is cooking prepare the other ingredients. Cut the cauliflower into small bite sized pieces by cutting down through the stems then pulling apart the floret sections. Mince the garlic and chop the fresh rosemary sprigs.

Toast your pine nuts in a dry frying pan over medium heat. Stir frequently so they don’t burn. Because of their high oil content, these little gems can burn easily, so make sure to keep an eye on them. Toast until just browned, about 3-5 minutes, then set aside.

In the same frying pan heat the olive oil and add the garlic, rosemary, garlic. Cook for about a minute. Add your cauliflower and sprinkle with ½ tsp. salt. Stir frequently until it begins to brown, about 5 minutes.

Drain your pasta and add to cauliflower. Add the sun dried tomatoes, pine nuts and then sprinkle with the remaining ½ tsp. salt. Gently mix everything together and cook for a few more minutes to heat the pasta and meld the flavors together. Serve and enjoy!

Recipe

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Pasta with Cauliflower, Sun Dried Tomatoes and Pine Nuts

This fantastic Pasta with Cauliflower, Sun Dried Tomatoes and Pine Nuts is a quick and healthy pasta that is great for a week night. The hearty pasta is an amazing contrast to the yummy cauliflower and tomatoes with just a hint of garlic and crunch of pine nuts.

Course Main Course

Cuisine American, Italian

Prep Time 5 minutes minutes

Cook Time 15 minutes minutes

Total Time 20 minutes minutes

Servings 6 servings

Ingredients

• ½ lb. Bowtie pasta
• ⅓ Cup Pinenuts
• 2 Tbs. Olive oil
• ½ Head Cauliflower about 4 cups of florets
• 2 tsp. Fresh Rosemary
• 2 Cloves Garlic
• 1 tsp. Salt divided
• ½ Cup Sun Dried Tomatoes

Instructions

• Cook pasta according to package directions or boil for about 11 minutes or until pasta is al dente.
• While pasta is cooking prepare the other ingredients. Cut the cauliflower into small bite sized pieces by cutting down through the stems then pulling apart the floret sections. Mince the garlic and chop the fresh rosemary sprigs.
• Toast the pine nuts in a dry frying pan over medium heat. Stir frequently so they don’t burn. Because of their high oil content, these little gems can burn easily, so make sure to keep an eye on them. Toast until just browned, about 3-5 minutes, then set aside.
• In the same frying pan heat the olive oil and add the garlic, rosemary, garlic. Cook for about a minute. Add cauliflower and sprinkle with ½ tsp. salt. Stir frequently until cauliflower begins to brown, about 5 minutes.
• Drain pasta and add to cauliflower. Add sun dried tomatoes, pine nuts and then sprinkle with the remaining ½ tsp. salt. Gently mix everything together and cook for a few more minutes to heat the pasta and meld the flavors together.

Variations

You can substitute your favorite kind of pasta in this recipe if you like. I used bowtie pasta because it has such a beautiful and hearty shape which mimics the florets of the cauliflower but you can easily use any kind of pasta the you like.

If you don't have or can't find sun dried tomatoes you can add in an equal amount of fresh cherry tomatoes cut in half. If won't have quite as much intense tomato flavor but it will still be good.

You can try substituting another vegetable in for the cauliflower but just remember that you will need to adjust your cooking time accordingly. A dense vegetable like carrots will need a little bit more cooking while broccoli will a little less cooking time. Fresh spinach will not really need any cooking time at all and can be added at the same time as the pasta.

Toasted slivered almonds are a good substitute for pine nuts if you can't find or have a pine nut allergy. Or

You also might like my lemon pesto with kale and almonds or creamy shells with peas and ricotta!

Please make sure to leave you comments and questions below. I'd love to hear from you.