Creamy Cauliflower Capellini
A flock of Canadian geese woke me from my slumbers early this morning; their trumpeting infiltrating my dream until I roused myself and went to the window.
The flock was so low, it seemed as though their wings would touch the tops of our maple trees. On and on they swept past, their downy undersides casting shadows over the homestead as they headed south. I heard them loud and clear: fall is here.
I’m ready for autumn. We’ve made peace with the return to school (what other option is there?), we harvested loads of berries, and the pantry is well stocked with pickles. I’ve invited friends over for a corn roast this upcoming weekend and plan on bobbing for apples and decorating with pumpkins. Let the sweater weather come; I’ll be watching the leaves turn and the geese leave us behind.
I’m also ready for comfort food, and it starts with today’s simple recipe for Creamy Cauliflower Capellini that comes together in under ten minutes.
Quick weeknight dinner? Yep. Family friendly? Ever so much. Hidden vegetables? That too, although my kids are down with cauliflower. If you can remember to stock a little ricotta in the refrigerator (or make your own as I do) and have quick-cooking pasta in the pantry, a fast dinner is well within reach.
Whether or not you are ready for the arrival of fall, I’m sure you’ll find this pasta recipe helps transition you away from summer.
Creamy Cauliflower Capellini
Ingredients
- 2/3 cup light cream
- 2 cups cooked cauliflower florettes
- 1/3 cup ricotta
- 1/4 teaspoon sea salt
- 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground white pepper
- 1 pinch fresh nutmeg
- 200 g capellini pasta (half a standard package)
Instructions
- Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil.
- Heat the cream in a medium saucepan and add the cooked cauliflower. Simmer the cream for a minute or two until the cauliflower is heated.
- Add cream and cauliflower to a blender and puree until smooth. Add the ricotta and blend again. Return the puree to the pan. Whisk in the salt, pepper, and nutmeg. Keep sauce hot while you cook the pasta.
- Boil the capellini for 3 minutes or according to package directions. Set aside 1/4 cup of the hot pasta water.
- Drain pasta, then toss with the creamy cauliflower sauce and the hot pasta water. Serve immediately.
Nutrition
What does fall look like in your neck of the woods?
This sounds sooo delicious!! Love this idea!
Adding this to our dinner menu!
I love this recipe, Aimee! It looks so comforting and perfect for the cooler months. It’s not quite Fall here yet as the temps are still in the 90’s and humid but Fall over here is a bit crisp and beautiful leaves turn a shade of fiery red!
I know it is still warm in parts – and here too, but if you look close enough, you can see the signs of fall. 🙂
This looks amazing!! I love using cauliflower to make creamy sauces.
Pinned to my dinner board! 🙂 This sounds so simple and comforting, Aimee. Yum!
Thanks for sharing, Autumn!
I think I’m going to resist the pull into fall by topping this with roasted tomatoes from the garden. Maybe I’m willing to at least admit we’re in a transitional season. (But supposed to be 80-90 degrees here this weekend, so we’ll be squeezing a few more drops out of summer!)
I’ve been loving roasted tomatoes, too. So intense!
We love cauliflower base sauce! But, my husband is lactose intolerant and therefore doesn’t eat ricotta. Can I substitute it for something else? If not, can I make ricotta using lactose-free milk? Thank you!
I often make my own ricotta, and I think lactose-free milk would also work fine. Here’s the technique I use if you are interested in trying it: http://www.seriouseats.com/2010/02/how-to-make-fresh-ricotta-fast-easy-homemade-cheese-the-food-lab.html
Thanks, Julia.
Thank you!
I love the idea of this – I love both cauliflower and making my own ricotta but have never thought to combine the two. Definitely great comfort food potential. 🙂
Kate – it is. And pasta only triples the comfort food factor.
Pasta is definitely my favorite comfort food and when paired with a creamy sauce…YUM.
I think I will be picking up some cauliflower soon.
I am very ready for Fall too. Especially after a heat wave this week brought in highs in the 90’s everyday :-/
I’m loving how affordable cauliflower is right now, Lisa. I hope you give the recipe a try!
Transition time is right. I think your flock of geese may have landed over here on the other side of Lake Ontario… because the population/flocks here seem to be growing exponentially! Prep. to head south for sure! My 4 year old doesn’t start school until next week, but we’ve been watching the schoolbusses pass by all week (TAD bit jealous). This recipe looks great! I love creamy cauliflower and will probably try this out with some vegan parmesan (Dairy allergy).
That is funny about the birds.
I think this could be made vegan pretty easily. Let me know how it goes!
I am so ready for fall too! and this capellini looks absolutely mouth watering…
What a perfect weeknight dinner!! Love this Aimee! xo
Super yum! Thanks for this- and for your back-to-school meal post. Autumn here looks like the summer we should have had! Good old ‘banana belt’ of Ontario has temps sitting at 34C humidex and higher, so our kids’ classrooms are a tad warm and we’ve had some good thunderstorms. Farmers and other folks are happy, and that’s what counts – plus we can still fit in some comfortable fall tenting, too!
I was waffling on the purchase of cauliflower yesterday but now know exactly what I’ll be making next week. I definitely won’t pass it up on my next trip.
Our Fall is unfortunate. There really is no difference in the scenery just thankful for the cooler temps (lower 90s.) Our leaves turn around November so for now I must live vicariously through others. 🙂
This is my kind of recipe! I’m not quite sure I’m ready for Autumn, but if it’s coming anyway, I’ll prepare myself and cozy up to a big bowl of this pasta – yum!
Hi Aimee, you have such a beautiful site. This looks delicious. I welcome comfort food anytime of the year.
Thank you so much, Kathleen!
Oh, oh, oh. You’ve got to be kidding me? This looks so delicious! Do you think it’d be good with broccoli too?
Well NOW I do!
Simply lovely. I cried a bit inside when I saw the first geese flying in formation, though. For now, I’m going to embrace the next two months before the snow flies.
Such a sweet story about the geese!! This pasta will definitely make it to our dinner table 🙂
Made this for dinner tonight and everyone loved it! Packed the leftovers into the kids lunchboxes for tomorrow. Delicious!
Fantastic, Allison!
We had this for dinner tonight! It was good and the kids had no idea about the cauliflower. We added grilled chicken for some protein. Next time we’ll add some steamed broccoli, and some garlic too. Thanks for the great recipe!
So glad you enjoyed it, Louise! Good idea to add chicken.
This is a great weeknight dinner, perfectly creamy and delicious!
Gorgeous recipe and photos. I can’t wait to try this. I’m such a summer girl that I’m fighting fall tooth and nail. I’ll give in eventually. Maybe. Ha.
Looking forward to meeting you soon. I should probably think about pulling my suitcase out from storage.
Ooh! Replace cream by soy cream and you have a real little vegan delight there! Can’T wait to try it. 🙂
no sweater weather here for us yet, but I cannot wait to dig into this meal! it’s simply gorgeous
All of this talk of fall has me jealous. It is still hot and very humid here in Houston. It MIGHT get down to the mid-80’s this weekend. But, I love this recipe and will save it for a month or so when it finally does cool down. Thanks.
I made this, blending with a hand blender (instead of the blender) and it worked! I added some garlic and parmesan cheese, and a few chilli flakes. Also, I kinda want to make it again, but using squash or pumpkin. Bet that would be amazing too 🙂
Thanks for a great recipe!
Hey Aimee, I just dropped by to leave a comment of how awesome this creamy cauliflower capellini is. I tried it a while ago and my entire family loved it as well. Thanks for the inspirations.
Thank you for letting me know, Julieane! I think it’s time I made it again. 🙂
By light cream do you mean half & half? Excited to try this recipe!
I have made this several times now. Yum! I also add bacon, which I think gives it an extra yum factor.