Pasta-based Vegan Recipes

Crispy Roasted Chickpeas

This recipe for crispy roasted chickpeas is spicy, crunchy, and easy to make! It comes together in less than 30 minutes and has the perfect amount of crunch.

I LOVE roasted chickpeas for a snack. Sometimes I’ll buy the pre-made kind at the store, but it’s really so easy and inexpensive to make at home in your oven or your air fryer.

A mixing bowl of chickpeas with oil/herbs coating them and a silicone spatula.

How to Roast Chickpeas:

To start, preheat your oven or air fryer to 400°F (200°C) and open a can of chickpeas. Drain the chickpeas into a colander and rinse them until the water runs clear. Then, pat the chickpeas dry with a clean cloth or some paper towels. Make sure they are as dry as you can get them.

After the chickpeas are dry, place them into a medium bowl and add some olive oil. Then, add your spices. We like to use salt to start. After that, we’ll add nutritional yeast and some garlic powder. We also add some Mrs. Dash no-salt seasoning blend. Feel free to experiment and use flavors that you like.

Line a baking sheet with some parchment paper. Add the spiced chickpeas and layer them evenly on the pan. Bake for 20 minutes in the oven or just 15 minutes in the air fryer. That’s it!

A baking sheet with crispy chickpeas scattered.

It’s really simple to make this recipe for crispy roasted chickpeas. It is the easiest snack to pop in the oven. You also have the option of air frying them as well! Recently, we got this one and we’ve been loving how crispy it makes everything without much oil.

We also like to use the roasted chickpeas in our salads to add a yummy crunchy texture. We also love using roasted chickpeas as a substitution for croutons in salads.

Roasted chickpeas sitting on a bed of lettuce with tofu cutlets and caesar dressing
Crispy Tofu Caesar Salad with Roasted Chickpea Croutons

We hope you like this recipe for crispy roasted chickpeas! They make a great protein-packed vegan snack. They are easy and super quick to make. This recipe for roasted chickpeas is crunchy and delicious.

If you are looking for more snack options, we have plenty here!

5 from 1 vote
Crispy chickpeas scattered on a baking sheet.
Print Friendly Version
Crispy Roasted Chickpeas
Prep Time
5 mins
Cook Time
20 mins
 

This recipe for crispy roasted chickpeas is spicy, crunchy, and easy to make! It comes together in less than 30 minutes and has the perfect amount of crunch.

Course: Snack
Keyword: chickpeas
Servings: 3 servings
Calories per Serving: 159 kcal
Ingredients
  • 1 can chickpeas (15 oz. can)
  • 1 teaspoon olive oil
  • 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
  • 1 tablespoon nutritional yeast
  • 1 teaspoon salt-free seasoning blend
US Customary – Metric
Instructions

  1. Preheat your oven or air fryer to 400°F (200°C). Line a baking sheet with parchment paper if using the oven.

  2. Drain and rinse chickpeas. Pat dry with a cloth or paper towels.

  3. Mix all ingredients in a medium bowl until combined. Add to baking sheet or air fryer basket. Bake for 20 minutes if using the oven or 15 minutes if using the air fryer.

Recipe Notes

A 15 oz can of chickpeas yields 1.5 cups drained cooked beans.

To use dried chickpeas, the measurement would be 125g dried chickpeas.

Crispy Roasted Chickpeas by Pasta-based. Crispy Roasted Chickpeas by Pasta-based.

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Homemade Vegan Ravioli Recipe

VEGAN Ravioli. Homemade. Fresh. Filled with Cashew Tofu Ricotta Cheese. Easy to make. Can be frozen for later. Delicious!

Overhead photo of a plate of vegan ravioli with red sauce on top garnished with basil.

We love spending time together making homemade ravioli. The process makes for a really fun and relaxing date night. We don’t have kiddos but I could imagine making raviolis would be a really fun (and messy) family activity too.

The best part about making raviolis together is that we get plenty of leftovers that we can store in our freezer. Whenever we have a really busy day and just don’t feel like preparing dinner, we just pop some frozen raviolis into a pot of boiling water.

Photo of a plate of vegan ravioli with red sauce on top garnished with basil. One ravioli is cut in half held by a fork.

How to Make the Vegan Ravioli Dough:

First, make your dough using silken tofu, olive oil, water, salt, and all-purpose flour. Before you ask, I have not tried a gluten-free version of this and I’m not sure how it would turn out. People usually have good results with the Bob’s 1-1 Gluten-Free Flour but I really don’t know in this case.

You can use several different methods to cut and form your raviolis. Use a small round cup or cookie cutter to make round raviolis. Another method is to use a ravioli stamp for more traditional shapes. You can also use a ravioli cutter or ravioli rolling pin.

A sheet of ravioli dough on top of a ravioli mold tray. Hands are holding a pastry bag full of vegan ricotta and filling in the ravioli divots.

Our favorite method, is to use a ravioli mold or tray. We purchased this ravioli maker tray and it’s been AMAZING!

It has allowed us to have identical squares with perfect crimped edges for each ravioli.  Also, it helps to have the dough in the tray when filling each ravioli, because you can fill it up really nicely to have them super stuffed if you like (who wouldn’t)!

If you decide to buy this, just make sure to roll your dough out thin but not too thin and always flour both pieces of the tray to be sure your dough doesn’t stick too much. The best method is to use a pasta maker machine and roll the dough to Level 5.

A baking sheet full of 48 uniform raviolis.

For Christmas a few years ago, my mom got us this pasta roller attachment for our Kitchenaid Stand Mixer.  That has made rolling out the pasta sheets a whole lot easier! 

The link I provided is for three attachments – the sheet roller, a spaghetti cutter and a fettuccine cutter.  You can purchase the sheet roller for a bit cheaper since all of these appliances can be quite expensive.

The Best Sauces for Vegan Ravioli

We smothered our raviolis in marinara sauce but using pesto, alfredo, or lemon olive oil would be delicious too. We also topped ours with vegan parmesan.

As always, if you make this and love it, please comment below or tag us on Instagram @pastabased.

3.85 from 32 votes
Print Friendly Version
Homemade Vegan Ravioli Recipe
Prep Time
45 mins
Cook Time
5 mins
Dough Resting Time
30 mins
Total Time
1 hr 20 mins
 

Homemade Vegan Ravioli Recipe stuffed with Vegan Cashew and Tofu Ricotta Cheese. Covered in your favorite marinara sauce.

Course: Dinner, Entree, Pasta
Cuisine: Italian, Vegan
Keyword: pasta, ravioli
Servings: 6 servings
Calories per Serving: 302 kcal
Author: Pasta-based
Ingredients
To Make Vegan Ravioli Dough
  • 2 cups all-purpose flour (plus more for kneading and rolling)
  • 1/2 cup silken tofu
  • 2 tablespoons water
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • 1 teaspoon salt
To Make Vegan Cashew Ricotta Cheese
  • 14 ounces firm tofu pressed
  • 2/3 cup raw cashews
  • 1/2 cup nutritional yeast
  • 2 tablespoons unsweetened almond milk
  • 4 cloves fresh garlic
  • 3 tablespoons lemon juice
  • 10 fresh basil leaves
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
US Customary – Metric
Instructions

  1. In a food processor, add ravioli dough ingredients and process until a ball forms.

  2. Place the ball on a lightly floured surface and knead for 1-2 minutes.

  3. Cover in plastic wrap and set dough to rest in the refrigerator for 30 minutes.

How to Make Vegan Cashew Ricotta

  1. Place all Vegan Cashew Ricotta ingredients into a food processor and process until smooth.

  2. Once the ricotta is smooth, spoon it into a large piping bag and cut off the tip.

How to Roll the Ravioli Dough

  1. After 30 minutes of resting, remove 1/4 of the dough from the plastic wrap. Keep the rest of the dough covered to prevent it from drying out.

  2. Using a pasta machine, roll out the dough into a sheet on the #4 setting. Or use a rolling pin to roll the dough until very thin.

The Ravioli Mold Method

  1. Using a ravioli mold, place a sheet of dough on the bottom tray. Create a small indent for each ravioli, being careful not to tear the pasta dough. Pipe the cashew ricotta into each divot, filling evenly to the top of the mold. Place another sheet of pasta dough on top. Use a rolling pin and roll overtop the dough so that it seals. Repeat until you run out of dough.

The Cookie Cutter Method

  1. Using a small cup or cookie-cutter, cut dough into circles. Ball up the unused dough and roll it out again, repeat until you run out of dough. (You can also cut them into even squares with a sharp knife or pizza cutter.) Place a small amount of cashew ricotta in the center of the dough. This depends on the size of your circle. We used about a teaspoon of ricotta for a circle that was 2.5 inches wide. 

  2. Spread a small amount of water around the outside of the dough with your finger. Place another dough circle on top and press around the edges to seal. 

Cooking and Storing the Ravioli

  1. To cook – drop a few ravioli into salted boiling water for 4-5 minutes. They will start to float once they're almost finished. Remove with a slotted spoon. Don't overcrowd your pot, cook them in batches. Serve warm with your favorite sauce.

  2. Store raviolis in the freezer. Place raw raviolis flat on a baking sheet and into the freezer for a few hours so they don't stick together. Once frozen, you can store them together in a plastic freezer bag or tupperware. To reheat, boil in salted water for 6-7 minutes.

Recipe Notes
  • Depending on the size you cut your dough, this recipe can make up to 48 ravioli.
  • You can freeze them for later!
    To freeze, place raw raviolis flat on a baking sheet and into the freezer for a few hours so they don’t stick together. Once frozen, you can store them together in a plastic freezer bag or tupperware. To reheat, boil in salted water for 6-7 minutes.
  • We smothered ours in marinara sauce but using pesto, alfredo, or lemon olive oil would be delicious too.
  • We also topped ours with vegan parmesan.

Nutrition Facts
Homemade Vegan Ravioli Recipe
Amount Per Serving
Calories 302 Calories from Fat 108
% Daily Value*
Fat 12g18%
Saturated Fat 2g13%
Sodium 489mg21%
Potassium 264mg8%
Carbohydrates 39g13%
Fiber 3g13%
Sugar 1g1%
Protein 10g20%
Vitamin A 35IU1%
Vitamin C 4mg5%
Calcium 21mg2%
Iron 3mg17%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

Homemade Vegan Ravioli Recipe by Pasta-based
3 Comments

Vegan Chicken-Style Tofu Cutlets

This recipe for Vegan Chicken-Style Tofu Cutlets is pressed and sliced firm tofu coated in breadcrumbs creating a delicious, golden crust.

Close up image of browned crispy tofu cutlets.

With these delicious Breaded Tofu Cutlets, you can either bake them in your oven or fry them in oil until browned and crispy. Serve simply with Cesar Salad or as Tofu Parmigiana for a delicious dinner that everyone will love.

How to Make the Tofu Cutlets

This easy tofu cutlet recipe is easy to make and comes together in just over 30 minutes.

  1. Use a tofu press to press a block of firm tofu.

    You can also wrap the tofu in paper towels and set a cast iron pan on top to press it if you don’t have a tofu press.

    We use a tofu press because it’s a lot less messy and it works a lot better than the paper towel method. But you do you! Use what you have.
  2. Set-up three shallow bowls with your coating ingredients. One bowl includes the flour. The next bowl is a mixture of cornstarch, water, and a dissolved bouillon cube or a teaspoon of bouillon base. Add Italian-seasoned breadcrumbs to the third bowl.
  3. Once the tofu is pressed, cut it in 8 even slices. Then, dip each piece of tofu into your coating bowls—flour, cornstarch/water/bouillon, breadcrumbs—in order.
  4. Finally, place the tofu on a parchment-lined baking sheet and bake at 400°F for 30 minutes, flipping halfway through.

    Or you can pan-fry the tofu in vegetable or coconut oil until the outside is brown. When the tofu is fried up, place them on paper towels to soak up excess oil.

    I personally prefer to fry the tofu in oil because it gives the crust a much deeper brown color.
Crispy breaded vegan tofu cutlets lined up on a parchment paper lined baking sheet. Half of the breaded cutlets are deep golden brown with text next to it saying that they are pan-fried. The other half of the cutlets are baked so they are a lighter brown with text next to it saying baked.

As you can see, this recipe for breaded tofu cutlets is so easy to make and use ingredients that you probably already have in your kitchen.

How to Serve Vegan Chicken-Style Tofu Cutlets

You can serve this recipe with so many different dishes. Cut them up and toss them in a salad. Add sauce and cheese for a yummy tofu parmigiana. Dip them into ketchup, vegan ranch, or vegan honey mustard. You can serve them on a sandwich or in a wrap. And so much more!

An overhead photo of a white bowl of crispy breaded tofu on top of a cesar salad. The salad includes a creamy, white cesar dressing and roasted chickpeas on top of bright green romaine lettuce. In the bottom corner, there is a larger wooden salad bowl that is mostly out of view and includes more cesar salad inside.

We have a few other cutlet options as well if you like these!

  • Seitan Parmesan: A soft, buttery rendition of a cutlet! This is made with beans and is perfect for so many classics.
  • Chicken-style Seitan Cutlets: These cutlets are protein packed and can be super crispy if fried. We eat these with pasta, pizza, sandwiches and more!
4.75 from 4 votes
Crispy breaded and pan-fried vegan tofu cutlets lined up in a row. The breadcrumb coating looks golden brown and delicious.
Print Friendly Version
Vegan Chicken-Style Tofu Cutlets
Prep Time
10 mins
Cook Time
30 mins
 

Crunchy and crispy breaded tofu cutlets. Easy and simple to make. Perfect for cesar salads, tofu parmigiana, and more! Delicious and firm tofu dredged in flour and breadcrumbs. Bake or fry in oil – your choice!

Course: Dinner, Lunch
Cuisine: Vegan, Vegetarian
Keyword: tofu, vegan italian recipes
Servings: 8 cutlets
Calories per Serving: 89 kcal
Ingredients
  • 14 oz extra-firm tofu
Bowl #1
  • 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
Bowl #2
  • 1 tablespoon cornstarch
  • 1 bouillon cube* (see notes)
  • 1/2 cup water
Bowl #3
  • 1/2 cup Italian-seasoned breadcrumbs
If pan-frying
  • 1/4 cup refined coconut oil
Instructions

  1. If baking, preheat your oven to 400°F (200°C). Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

  2. Press the tofu block using a tofu press for 10 minutes. Once pressed, drain the tofu and cut into 8 slices.

  3. Set-up 3 shallow bowls with your breading ingredients. In the first bowl, add the flour.

    In the second bowl, add the water and use a whisk to dissolve your bouillon cube or bouillon base, then add the cornstarch and whisk to combine.

    In the third bowl, add the breadcrumbs.

    Dip each tofu slice in each bowl, one by one. First in the flour, then the water/bouillon/cornstarch, then the breadcrumbs. Coat evenly.

If baking the tofu cutlets

  1. Spray cooking spray evenly along the parchment paper. Place the tofu cutlets on the baking sheet. Then spray cooking spray lightly on top of the tofu slices. Bake for 30 minutes, flipping halfway through.

If pan-frying the tofu cutlets

  1. In a large pan over medium heat, melt the coconut oil. Add each slice one by one but avoid over-crowding the pan. Pan-fry each tofu slice until golden brown on the bottom, then flip over and pan-fry on the other side. Place finished cutlets on paper towels to soak up excess oil.

Recipe Notes

*Substitute the bouillon cube with 1 teaspoon “Better Than Bouillon” base or substitute both the bouillon cube and the water for 1/2 cup vegetable broth.

 

Nutrition Facts
Vegan Chicken-Style Tofu Cutlets
Amount Per Serving
Calories 89 Calories from Fat 9
% Daily Value*
Fat 1g2%
Saturated Fat 1g6%
Cholesterol 1mg0%
Sodium 252mg11%
Potassium 102mg3%
Carbohydrates 13g4%
Fiber 1g4%
Sugar 1g1%
Protein 6g12%
Vitamin A 14IU0%
Vitamin C 1mg1%
Calcium 29mg3%
Iron 1mg6%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

nutrition values are estimates and based on the baked tofu cutlet recipe

Crispy Breaded Vegan Chicken-Style Tofu Cutlets by Pasta-based.

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Vegan Spaghetti Carbonara

A white bowl filled with Vegan Spaghetti Carbonara with Mushroom Bacon. A blue cloth with a diamond pattern is underneath the bowl. A fork with a wooden handle is placed inside the bowl from the left side. At the top, there is a pan with some extra Vegan Spaghetti Carbonara.

There’s a lot of debate out there about how to make authentic Spaghetti Carbonara. Some swear by keeping it as simple as possible, an egg sauce with  pecorino romano cheese and guanciale, shaming anyone who uses cream, or garlic, or parsley. I’ll tell you right now, Carbonara is probably one of the least vegan-friendly recipes out there but that only made the challenge more exciting for us. Vegan Spaghetti Carbonara, here we come!

You won’t find any eggs, or pecorino cheese in this recipe, and you surely won’t find any guanciale. But you will find wholesome, plant-based ingredients that make this copycat recipe a Vegan Italian staple for you to indulge just the same.

For our Vegan Spaghetti Carbonara recipe, we created an egg sauce that is very close to what a true egg yolk might look or taste like. We used some Kala Namak salt which is something new that we recently acquired.

There are a few staples that you’ll find in many vegan pantries and I think that Kala Namak should fall in that list along with Nutritional Yeast or Vital Wheat Gluten for example.

If you’re new to veganism, order some Kala Namak so you can make this recipe, if you want to try the recipe using regular salt, that’s fine too—although I will say regular salt doesn’t lend itself to the exact flavor we need. Kala Namak has an eggy scent and a subtle egg flavor.

The egg sauce is really simple with only a few ingredients. We didn’t want to add any tofu or cream because we were trying our best to replicate what a true Carbonara might be like.

Vegan Spaghetti Carbonara by Pasta-based. Marinated baby bella mushrooms with a silver spoon..

Mushrooms. Love them or hate them.

We are not big mushroom people regularly but we thought they would still be a perfect substitution for this recipe. And they are. Marinated and sautéed baby bella mushrooms are quite delicious and the texture is excellent.

The only thing that I will give you advice on for making the mushrooms is that you drain the marinade out before cooking them in the pan. And that you wipe down the pan, or use a separate pan, when combining all the ingredients together with the cooked spaghetti. Mushrooms are very porous and will absorb the marinade well and you don’t want the recipe to be too salty.

Cook the mushrooms until they shrivel up. We use 3 cups of sliced mushrooms in our recipe, but I wouldn’t be mad if you made more than that. Traditional Carbonara doesn’t have a lot of guanciale (guanciale is basically like a fancy bacon, I won’t go into details…)

The mushrooms shrink a lot when you cook them, and you want to make sure they are cooked a good amount to make them crispy around the edges but chewy too.

Vegan Spaghetti Carbonara by Pasta-based. Creamy spaghetti noodles in a pink saute pan with a blue cloth underneath. Stainless steel tongs are resting in the pan with spaghetti tangled between them. Marinated mushrooms are peeking through the spaghetti.

Our favorite vegan parmesan cheese. 

The first time we had it was at a vegan pizzeria. We gushed at the owner, “Is this housemade?! It’s so real!” and she laughed and told us it was Go Veggie. Ever since then, we always keep a couple of them in our fridge.

We hope you like this new recipe for Vegan Spaghetti Carbonara. It’s very simple to make and it comes together in under 30 minutes. It’s creamy, it’s cheesy, and the mushroom bacon is just the right amount of umami. Garnish with some more vegan parmesan and freshly cracked black pepper. Enjoy!

Alternatives for Vegan Spagetti Carbonara

If you want to add more protein to this dish, we have the perfect solution. Please follow this link to our vegan penne alla vodka recipe, and you can find a tempeh pancetta recipe towards the bottom. A huge protein boost and will make for a perfect mushroom substitute!

4.34 from 6 votes
Print Friendly Version
Vegan Spaghetti Carbonara
Cook Time
30 mins
 

This recipe for Spaghetti Carbonara uses simple vegan ingredients and comes together beautifully in less than 30 minutes.

Course: Dinner, Pasta
Cuisine: Italian, Vegan, Vegetarian
Keyword: carbonara, italian, Mushrooms, pasta, spaghetti squash, vegan, vegan italian recipes
Servings: 5 servings
Calories per Serving: 483 kcal
Ingredients
Mushroom Guanciale (Bacon)
  • 3 cups sliced baby bella mushrooms
  • 3 tablespoons tamari
  • 1 tablespoon maple syrup
  • 1 teaspoon liquid smoke
Carbonara Sauce
  • 2 cups water
  • 2 tablespoons corn starch
  • 4 tablespoons olive oil
  • 1 tablespoon nutritional yeast
  • 1 teaspoon kala namak (black salt)
  • 1 pinch turmeric
Other ingredients
  • 16 ounces spaghetti
  • 1/2 cup Go Veggie vegan parmesan cheese
US Customary – Metric
Instructions

  1. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add spaghetti, follow directions on package for cook time. Reserve 1 cup of pasta water before draining. Drain and set aside.

Carbonara Sauce

  1. In a small pot over medium heat, whisk together the water and cornstarch. Once combined, stir in the olive oil, nutritional yeast, kala namak, and turmeric.

  2. Increase the heat to medium-high and whisk for 3-5 minutes until the sauce thickens.

Mushroom Guanciale (Bacon)

  1. In a medium bowl, whisk together soy sauce, olive oil, maple syrup, and liquid smoke. Add the sliced baby bella mushrooms and stir to coat. Marinate for 20 minutes.

  2. Drain excess marinade. In a large pan over medium-heat, add the mushrooms in an even layer. Stir occasionally until crispy on both sides, about 5-8 minutes. Once done, place on paper towels to soak up any excess liquid.

To assemble the Spaghetti Carbonara

  1. Add the cooked pasta back into the large pot. Add the carbonara sauce and the mushroom guanciale (bacon). Top with parmesan cheese and combine until cheese is melted. Re-heat on the stove if the ingredients have cooled down (as needed). Add reserved pasta water as necessary.

Recipe Notes

 

Nutrition Facts
Vegan Spaghetti Carbonara
Amount Per Serving
Calories 483 Calories from Fat 117
% Daily Value*
Fat 13g20%
Saturated Fat 2g13%
Sodium 1085mg47%
Potassium 447mg13%
Carbohydrates 76g25%
Fiber 4g17%
Sugar 6g7%
Protein 16g32%
Vitamin C 1mg1%
Calcium 28mg3%
Iron 2mg11%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
 

Nutrition Values are approximate. 

5 Comments

Vegan Deep Dish Pizza

Make this recipe for Vegan Deep Dish Pizza for dinner tonight! Baked in a cast iron skillet this pizza has a THICK crust and is topped with melty vegan mozzarella, garlicky red sauce, and homemade vegan sausage crumbles. It’s easy to make and extremely delicious… and addicting! If you like thick crust pizza, you will LOVE this.

Vegan Deep Dish Pizza by Pasta-based. Thick crust pizza in a hot octagonal-shaped cast iron pan straight out of the oven. Thick golden brown crust, baked in a cast iron skillet with melty vegan mozzarella cheese and homemade plant-based sausage crumbles.

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3 Comments
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