Dairy free pasta with creamy spinach sauce is an easy lunch or dinner recipe. It’s a great way to sneak a little spinach into your family’s diet. This cheesy pasta dish comes together in a flash and is a tasty meal that everyone loves!
What do your kids like to eat?
I know I’ve mentioned that macaroni and cheese is always a favorite over here – my oldest son loves the classic orange mac and cheese. If you can’t have gluten or dairy, you might wonder if you will ever enjoy macaroni and cheese again. Yes, you still can! My recipe for gluten free dairy free macaroni and cheese is easy and very tasty.
I’ve recently started making a white sauce for pasta with fresh spinach blended in, and I’m happy to report that it’s a big hit over here. My son loves it. This cheesy pasta with spinach is perfect for kids and adults alike.
This is super simple to make – you simply add fresh spinach to the cheesy sauce, and then blend it all up with an immersion blender. Once the sauce is ready, add your hot pasta, stir, and serve! This flavorful pasta is also really delicious with the addition of grilled chicken.
What kind of dairy free milk is best for making a dairy free cream sauce?
I like unsweetened coconut milk beverage – the kind you find in the refrigerator case. I find that it makes a very creamy sauce. Any non-dairy milk that is unsweetened should work pretty well! Rice milk, oat milk, soy milk…all of these would be good choices.
Dairy free cheese tastes different…how can I find one that I like?
Dairy free cheese does taste different than dairy cheese. But you just have to try different brands until you find one that works for your diet, and that you enjoy. We like Daiya Mozzarella style shreds. They melt well, and have a mild flavor.
If the first brand you try isn’t for you, keep trying! Read my guide on dairy substitutes to learn more about different substitutions.
What brand of gluten free pasta is best?
There are so many brands of gluten free pasta available! You will have to try them to find your favorite, but we like the brands Jovial, Ancient Harvest, and Delallo. Make sure to call the company to find a brand that works for your particular allergies or dietary needs.
Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links.
Recipe
Pasta with Creamy Spinach Sauce.
Ingredients
- 12 ounces gluten free pasta I used penne
- 3 Tablespoons vegan buttery spread
- 3 cups vegan mozzarella shreds I used Daiya brand
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 ½ cups non-dairy milk
- 1 teaspoon salt
- â…“ teaspoon pepper
- 1 cuo fresh spinach leaves
Instructions
- Cook the pasta according to package directions.
- While the pasta cooks, make the sauce. Melt the vegan buttery spread in a large pot. Add the Daiya cheese mozzarella shreds, salt, pepper, garlic powder, and non-dairy milk. Cook over medium heat, stirring often.
- Once the cheese is melted and the sauce is smooth, add the spinach. Stir until the spinach wilts.
- Remove the pan from the heat and blend the sauce using an immersion blender.
- Add the cooked and drained pasta to the cheesy sauce. Stir well to coat. Season with more salt and pepper if desired. Serve immediately.
Nutrition
What easy meals have you been making lately?
Erin
This was fantastic! My son is allergic to dairy and gets tired of eating the same things over and over. My whole family enjoyed this. Thank you for the recipe..
Kelly Roenicke
So glad you liked it! Thank you for letting me know!
Lydia
Hi! So I’m not vegan (but planning on going vegetarian once my iron goes up) and this recipe is lovely!!! I bet it taste even better with the dairy free stuff! Definitely keeping this. (Also added roasted garlic and pepper flakes instead of just garlic powder For some spice! Thanks so much!
Amaret
Loved this recipe! So simple, super quick and oh my gosh DELISH! Perfect for a post gym meal, or a quick and easy dinner for sure. Instead of blending though, I chopped the spinach to save even more time and washing up!
Kelly Roenicke
So glad you liked it! Thanks for letting me know!
Shayna
I’d love to try this but my house is full of picky eaters. Can you really taste that this is dairy free?
Kelly Roenicke
I think that this just tastes like a flavorful, creamy sauce.
V. Piper
Hi! Lovely recipe, but I unfortunately ran into a problem: The cheese stuck together like glue! Since I did not have access to the mozzarella you suggested, I used regular instead, and that’s really the only change I made. Other than that, what do you think went wrong? Anyway, great recipe! I hope to try it again without messing up. Thank you so much!
Kelly Roenicke
You might want to try tossing the shredded cheese with a bit of flour before stirring into the sauce.
Pam Holtz
What non-dairy milk would you recommend cooking with for recipes like this? Would you use that same non-dairy milk to bake with, or would you suggest something different? Thanks! :)
Kelly Roenicke
We often use the refrigerated unsweetened coconut milk beverage, but you could use soy, almond, or even rice milk. Rice milk would be the least creamy of those options. All of these milks work for sweet and savory recipes.
Angela
I tried this and loved it. I need a way to add more protein, in a vegan way. Any suggestions?
Kelly Roenicke
Maybe chickpeas? You could even roast them a bit first if you wanted!
Tasha Silver
Just made this a tried it out on the rest of the household. AMAZING! Im lactose intolerant, so while eating this i thought i would get sick because of how creamy and authentic it felt, but of course I didn’t. So delicious. I did use a my preferred soya vegan cheese and 3 cloves of garlic instead of powdered since I seem to have ran out of the powder. Amazing non the less though!
Kelly
Awesome, so glad you liked it! Yay! :)
GFnewbie
Hey there – this looks delish! Just wondering what brand of vegan & gf pasta you use (we live in Canada) – I can’t find any my son will actually eat ?
timos
mozarella is dairy and not vegan, also glutenfree pasta is still nog vegan. i was specificaly googling for gluten free dishes and this comes up.
Kelly
The gluten free pastas I use are vegan – they only contain corn, rice, water, etc. No egg.
I use Daiya mozzarella shreds – a vegan cheese. http://daiyafoods.com/our-foods/shreds/mozzarella/ Hope that helps!
nicholed92
Hello, I was wondering if the brand Vegan Gourmet Mozzarella Cheese would work instead of Daiya? I find that Daiya has a funky aftertaste.
myshoecollection
thanks for your recipe! what can i substitute the vegan buttery spread (will coconut oil work?) and the Daiya mozzarella shreds (we don’t have dairy free cheese here)?
Kelly
You could try a little coconut oil, or you could use a little coconut cream in place of both the oil and the shreds. I’m not sure how it will turn out, but that’s where I would start.
Kelly
And add some nutritional yeast for sure for that cheesy flavor!
Teresa
I made this for dinner last night, and it was so good! I subbed onion powder for the garlic powder d/t our son’s garlic sensitivity. Thanks for all the great recipes. This one, in addition to many of your others, will be on our menu rotation.
Kelly
Yay! So glad you like it! Thanks for letting me know! :)
Kristy @ Southern In Law
Ooh this looks perfect! I bet you wouldn’t even notice it’s dairy free!
Kelly
Thank you!
Elizabeth DiBurro
I’m always looking for new sauce ideas for our pasta! We can’t do daiya, but I bet nutritional yeast would be yummy too! Thanks for sharing! :)
Kelly
Oh yes, that would be good! Love nutritional yeast!
KeeleyMcGuire
What a delicious dinner idea!
Kelly
Thank you!
Sarah @Whole and Heavenly Oven
We are total recipe twins, Kelly! I have a spinach pasta recipe going up later this week! So cool. :) I seriously LOVE how cozy and comforting this looks! Get in mah belly!
Kelly
So fun!
Gayle @ Pumpkin 'N Spice
Oh this pasta looks SO good! I love the spinach cheese sauce. So creative, Kelly!
Kelly
Thanks, Gayle!
Kristine | Kristine's Kitchen
I’m going to try this one soon! It looks delicious, and I hope my kids will like it. They like my kale pesto pasta, so I bet this would go over well with them, too!
Kelly
I hope you love it!