Creamy Lemon Zucchini Pasta with Sourdough Pangrattato – Dairy Free!
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This lemon zucchini pasta with homemade sourdough pangrattato is a pasta dish the entire family will DEVOUR! Ready in 20 minutes, a fresh, zesty lemon sauce and seared zucchini, this pasta is irresistible when topped with an easy herby sourdough breadcrumb to finish. And it’s entirely dairy-free (and vegan!)!
The creamiest lemon zucchini pasta made without dairy:
This is actually the lemon zucchini pasta that will knock your socks off, jaw on the floor, and have you scooping onto your plate for seconds and thirds, and it’s made entirely without cheese.
I’m serious, you can fully put the cheese down here (vegan or not!), because it’s not necessary.
Don’t trust me? My 83-year-old Sicilian grandmother (who’s responsible for inspiring me to veganize not just our family’s lasagna recipe but also the ever so favorite TIRAMISÙ!) fully approved of this one.
And no, she’s not vegan. Yet this pasta dish 100% is and you’d never know it.
Like my pasta con broccoli and my creamy lemon butter beans, you only need a few simple ingredients that you already have in your pantry (think olive oil, pine nuts, dried pasta, etc.), some fresh produce, and about 20 minutes for the easiest lemon zucchini pasta that you’ll be making all summer long.
Simple Ingredients:
- Pasta: Any of your favorite pasta shapes will work here, but especially those that can take on more sauce (think fusilli, conchiglie, orecchiette, etc.). And use gluten-free as needed!
- Lemon: We’ll use both the lemon zest and lemon juice here.
- Zucchini: Side note and not at all a tip or suggestion for the recipe, but my husband and I just started our mini veggie garden, and we’re growing zucchini!! So get ready for more zucchini recipes coming your way soon!
- Garlic: Adding to the above, we’re also planting garlic in the fall so won’t see that until next summer, but hey, really excited to be growing veggies from scratch to be the stars of the show in these recipes!!
- Shallot
- Dairy free milk: Any dairy-free milk will do, but I especially love my homemade oat milk (because it does lend itself to be a bit creamier), almond milk, soy milk, or cashew milk. Cashew milk will be SUPER creamy, but if you’re nut free, go for oat or soy milk. I would avoid coconut milk all together, because that’s not the flavor profile we’re going for here.
- Flour: Just a touch to help thicken the sauce. This is because we’re not using dairy cheese, which tends to make sauces a bit thicker (but don’t worry- it still somehow tastes cheesy!). For gluten-free, you can use cornstarch!
For the sourdough pangrattato, it’s just:
- Olive oil
- Garlic powder
- Sourdough
- Pine nuts
- Dried or fresh parsley
Let’s cook this pasta:
For the full written instructions and ingredient measurements, see the bottom of this post in the recipe card. You can also hit the “jump to recipe” button at the top of this post! Here, we’ll go over a brief overview of the steps, along with providing visuals for a better understanding of the recipe.
Key tips for making this dish:
- Don’t skip the roux: I totally get it- it’s really enticing to just mix the flour right into the large batch of dairy-free milk, but DON’T do this. You’ll end up with clumps of flour rather than a smooth, creamy sauce that looks gorgeously silky.
- Use fresh lemon: A few people have commented sometimes using lemon juice already in a bottle in some of my recipes, and I really recommend NOT doing this. The lemon juice in a bottle will lose acidity, so it won’t taste as fresh (no matter how recently you’ve purchased it). Fresh is always best!
- A little pasta water is always good: I add this in at the end to thicken the sauce even more. Because we have the creamy almond milk and the lemon, it actually reads as “cheesy” without any cheese. Then you stir in some extra pasta water for even more thickness- you’re so going to love it!
If you make this recipe, please be sure to leave a comment and a rating ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ below. This helps others to find the recipes! As always, I absolutely love to see your beautiful creations on Instagram and Pinterest, so be sure to tag me there as well!
Print
One Pot Lemon Zucchini Pasta with Sourdough Pangrattato
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Cook Time: 15 minutes
- Total Time: 20 minutes
- Yield: 4 1x
- Category: Dinner, Pasta
- Method: Stove top
- Cuisine: Italian
- Diet: Dairy-Free, Vegan
Description
This lemon zucchini pasta with homemade sourdough pangrattato is a pasta dish the entire family will DEVOUR! With a fresh, zesty lemon sauce and seared zucchini, this pasta is irresistible when topped with an easy herby sourdough breadcrumb to finish. And it’s entirely dairy-free (and vegan!)!
Ingredients
Lemon Zucchini Pasta
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 3 shallots, minced
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 large zucchinis, sliced
- 16 ounces pasta of choice
- 1 1/2 cups (360 mL) dairy-free milk
- 1 tbsp all-purpose flour or cornstarch
- 2 large lemons
- 2 tbsp fresh lemon zest
- 1/2 tsp sea salt, to taste
- Fresh parsley, to garnish
Sourdough Pangrattato
- 2–3 slices day-old sourdough
- 1/2 tbsp olive oil
- 1/4 cup pine nuts
- 1 tsp dried parsley
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1/2 tsp sea salt
Instructions
- Prep: Wash the zucchini, and prep the shallots, garlic, and zucchini. Preheat the oven to 400F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Place a large pot of salted water on the stove to bring to a boil as you cook.
- Toast the bread: For the pangrattato, place the slices of bread onto the baking sheet to toast for 10 minutes, until crunchy.
- Blend: Place the toasted bread into a food processor, and pulse to create a chunky bread crumb. Remove from the food processor, and set aside.
- Saute: In a large saucepan, heat the olive oil on medium heat, and sauté the shallots and garlic until golden brown and fragrant. Add in the zucchini, and reduce the heat to low. Cover to cook the zucchini for 3-5 minutes, until tender. The remove the cover, add in the sea salt, and continue to sauté until the zucchini slices are seared on the edges.
- Cook the pasta: While the zucchini are finishing, pour the pasta into the pot of water and cook the pasta as you finish the sauce.
- Make the roux: In a separate small bowl, whisk together 1/2 cup (120 mL) of the dairy free milk and the flour or cornstarch until there are no more clumps.
- Make the sauce: Pour the remaining 1 cup (240 mL) of the dairy free milk into the pot, along with the lemon zest, and the juice from 2 large lemons. Then pour in the roux and cook the sauce on medium-low until it begins to thicken. Then turn off the heat and cover.
- Finish the pasta: Once the pasta is cooked to al dente (about 15 minutes), pour out most of the water, save for 1/3-1/2 cup, and dump the pasta and the remaining pasta water into the sauce. Toss the pasta into the sauce to even coat. Cover and set aside while you finish the pangrattato.
- Finish the pangrattato: In a medium saucepan, heat the olive oil on medium heat, and add in the breadcrumbs, garlic powder, pine nuts, parsley, and sea salt. Saute on medium heat until the pine nuts are fragrant and the breadcrumbs are golden brown. Then remove from heat and set aside.
- Serve: Plate the pasta with a sprinkling of the sourdough pangrattato and fresh parsley. Serve and enjoy! Store any leftovers in an airtight container and in the fridge for up to 4 days. Store leftover pangrattato in a separate container in the fridge.
Notes
Gluten free: Use gluten-free pasta, gluten-free bread, and cornstarch.
