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    Home > Recipes

    Brown Rice Pasta with Creamy Cilantro Sauce

    Published: Mar 17, 2016 · Updated: Oct 27, 2020 · by Veronika Sykorova · This post may contain affiliate links · 6 Comments

    220 shares
    Jump to Recipe·Print Recipe·5 from 2 reviews

    Creamy Cilantro Sauce!!!

    Okay, I might be overly excited about this post, but can you blame me? You know you love pasta too, don't try to hide itl. This sauce is everything you want from pasta sauce — creamy, satisfying, and really tasty. If you were to tell me a year ago I was going to be swooning over this creamy cilantro sauce right now, I'd say you're crazy. I hated cilantro with a passion, I could not stand the taste of it in anything. But now? There's always cilantro in the fridge in our house. Just last night, I was making sushi and was really happy I found leftover cilantro hidden in the fridge. I'M LITERALLY OBSESSED — all-caps obsessed.

    The general misconception about healthy food is that you won't ever be able to treat yourself to something sweet or eat a big bowl of comforting pasta. That's so not true! In fact, I'm snacking on raw chocolate bites I made yesterday and I'm loving life.

    Does this pasta look boring? No! Is it delicious? Yes. Is it healthy? Absolutely!! Well, okay, maybe it's not raw-smoothie-with-kale-and-10-superfoods-in-it healthy, but it's gluten-free, vegan, and definitely better for you than any regular pasta dish.

    I've been really into brown rice pasta lately and I can't get enough of it. Whether it's drowned in this creamy cilantro sauce or this Roasted Bell Pepper Sauce, or last but definitely not least this Tomato Sauce with Veggies and Pine Nuts (my go to meal), I love it.

    Brown Rice Pasta with Creamy Cilantro Sauce - I absolutely LOVE this recipe! Gluten-free, vegan, and totally scrumptious! The Creamy Cilantro Sauce isn't only great as a pasta sauce. You can thin it out and use it as salad dressing or use it as dip! | thehealthfulideas.com

    Reasons you need Creamy Cilantro Sauce in your life:

    • it's easy to make
    • it's creamy
    • it's really delicious
    • it's a healthy
    • it's vegan
    • did I say it's delicious
    • you can pour it over pasta, use it as salad dressing, dip sweet potato fries in it or even put it on sushi! (yes, I made super spicy sushi the other day and put a dollop of this sauce on each piece and it was heavenly)
    • do you really need more reasons to make this?
    • I'll let the pictures below speak for themselves ↓

    Brown Rice Pasta with Creamy Cilantro Sauce - I absolutely LOVE this recipe! Gluten-free, vegan, and totally scrumptious! The Creamy CIlantro Sauce isn't only great as a pasta sauce. You can thin it out and use it as salad dressing or use it as dip! | thehealthfulideas.com

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    Brown Rice Pasta with Creamy Cilantro Sauce - I absolutely LOVE this recipe! Gluten-free, vegan, and totally scrumptious! The Creamy CIlantro Sauce isn't only great as a pasta sauce. You can thin it out and use it as salad dressing or use it as dip! | thehealthfulideas.com

    Looks scrumptious, right? The roasted veggies on top complete the dish and bring it to perfection. You don't have to use bell peppers and zucchinis if you don't have those on hand. Basically any veggies you can roast would work with this dish. Example options would be aubergine, cherry tomatoes, broccoli, cauliflower, or mushroom (I'd sautee the mushrooms instead of roasting).

    You can water the sauce down as much as you like. If it seems to thick, add more water, and if it's too thin add more avocado. The recipe makes enough sauce for 4 people so cook enough pasta accordingly. In the recipe, I don't specify how much pasta you should cook because that's really up to you. Some people eat less, some more — I'm usually about the overflowing-big-bowl-of-pasta dinner if I'm being honest so it's completely up to you. You can even use the sauce for 2 people only (I know I did, but shhh) but be prepared to be very full because the fat from the avocado makes it very hearty and filling. You can divide the sauce into two if you're cooking for 1-2 people and keep the rest of the unused sauce in the fridge for up to 3 days.

    Brown Rice Pasta with Creamy Cilantro Sauce - I absolutely LOVE this recipe! Gluten-free, vegan, and totally scrumptious! The Creamy CIlantro Sauce isn't only great as a pasta sauce. You can thin it out and use it as salad dressing or use it as dip! | thehealthfulideas.com

    What's your favorite pasta dish? Comment below, I'd love to know! :)

    Brown Rice Pasta with Creamy Cilantro Sauce - I absolutely LOVE this recipe! Gluten-free, vegan, and totally scrumptious! The Creamy CIlantro Sauce isn't only great as a pasta sauce. You can thin it out and use it as salad dressing or use it as dip! | thehealthfulideas.com

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    Brown Rice Pasta with Creamy Cilantro Sauce - I absolutely LOVE this recipe! Gluten-free, vegan, and totally scrumptious! The Creamy Cilantro Sauce isn't only great as a pasta sauce. You can thin it out and use it as salad dressing or use it as dip! | thehealthfulideas.com

    Brown Rice Pasta with Creamy Cilantro Sauce

    5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star 5 from 2 reviews
    • Author: The Healthful Ideas
    • Prep Time: 5 mins
    • Cook Time: 15 mins
    • Total Time: 20 mins
    • Yield: 2-4 1x
    • Category: Main Dish
    Print Recipe
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    Description

    Brown Rice Pasta with Creamy Cilantro Sauce. Gluten-free, vegan, and absolutely scrumptious! You can use the creamy sauce for salads or as a dip!


    Ingredients

    Units Scale
    • 1 avocado
    • 1 cup packed handful cilantro leaves, thick stems removed
    • handful parsley or another fresh herb you have on hand (optional)
    • the juice of one lime
    • 3 tbsp olive oil
    • ⅓ cup water (or more depending on how thick you want the sauce to be, add less if you want it as a dip)
    • ½ tsp onion powder
    • ½ tsp garlic powder
    • ¼-½ teaspoon chilli powder
    • pinch sea salt
    • freshly cracked black pepper to taste
    • 2 bell peppers
    • 2 zucchinis, peeled if not organic
    • ½ tsp coconut oil
    • brown rice pasta (enough for 4)

    Optional add-ins:

    • chilli flakes for topping
    • cherry tomatoes (fresh or roasted)
    • cooked chickpeas
    • roasted eggplant, broccoli, cauliflower, sauteed mushroom

    Instructions

    1. Preheat the oven to 200C (392F).
    2. First, make the sauce. Put all the sauce ingredients into a blender (avocado, olive oil, water, onion powder, garlic powder, chilli, salt, and pepper) and blend on high until smooth. Set aside.
    3. Remove the seeds from the bell peppers and cut them into thin stripes. Do the same with the zucchinis (cut them as you would fries).
    4. Line a baking tray with parchment paper. Add the bell peppers, zucchinis and the coconut oil. Place the tray in the oven for a minute or two for the oil to melt. Take it out, toss to coat everything and season with sea salt and pepper. Put back into the oven and roast for 20 minutes or until soft. When they're done, keep them in the turned-off oven so they stay warm.
    5. Cook the pasta according to package instruction (it should be10-15 minutes).
    6. Drain the pasta and put it into a pan along with the sauce, toss to coat well and heat up over medium heat so that it's nice and hot. Add more sea salt or pepper if desired.
    7. Serve with the roasted bell peppers and zucchinis on top.

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    Did you make this recipe?

    Comment and rate the recipe below and tag @thehealthfulideas on Instagram with the hashtag #thehealthfulideas, I'd love to see what you made!

    Brown Rice Pasta with Creamy Cilantro Sauce - I absolutely LOVE this recipe! Gluten-free, vegan, and totally scrumptious! The Creamy Cilantro Sauce isn't only great as a pasta sauce. You can thin it out and use it as salad dressing or use it as dip! | thehealthfulideas.com

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    220 shares

    Comments

    1. Rosalie Ekkert says

      January 15, 2019 at 10:51 pm

      Where do u use the cilantro? Is it put into the blender along with the avocado? You seem to have forgotten it in the instructions.🤣

      Reply
      • Veronika | thehealthfulideas says

        July 11, 2019 at 11:34 am

        Oh no! Haha I'm sorry about that, yes you put it in the blender along with the rest of sauce ingredients.

        Reply
    2. Vi Singhal says

      August 10, 2019 at 1:34 pm

      I made this today and it was fantastic. I did not have cilantro so left that out. I am not crazy about avocado so was not sure if I would like this. The dislike of the avocado is more of a texture thing for me. This turned so amazingly well! I cannot wait to make it again.

      Reply
      • Veronika | thehealthfulideas says

        August 31, 2019 at 4:47 pm

        I’m so glad you liked it! Thank you for the feedback! :)

        Reply
    3. Nancy says

      February 03, 2020 at 8:47 pm

      This was delicious! I added toasted pine nuts and everything turned out wonderful. Definitely a keeper! Thanks for posting the recipe.

      Reply
      • Veronika | thehealthfulideas says

        February 07, 2020 at 9:18 pm

        Thank you so much! I'm glad you enjoyed it!

        Reply

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    A photo of a young woman in a white and red striped shirt with a white backround.

    Welcome!

    I'm Veronika and The Healthful Ideas where I share original plant-based recipes for every day cooking and popular classics with a healthy twist.

    More about me

    Latest Recipes

    • Two strawberry chocolate chip muffins stacked on top of each other.
      Chocolate Strawberry Muffins
    • A matcha latte with cold foam on top dusted with matcha for garnish and a glass straw.
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    • A stack of pancakes with sprinkles with whipped cream and more sprinkles on top and maple syrup dripping down the sides.
      Birthday Cake Pancakes
    • Bright orange popsicles on a white serving platter with ice, fresh passion fruit, and lime slices.
      Passion Fruit Popsicles

    A photo of a young woman in a white and red striped shirt with a white backround.

    Welcome!

    I'm Veronika and The Healthful Ideas where I share original plant-based recipes for every day cooking and popular classics with a healthy twist.

    More about me

    Latest Recipes

    • Two strawberry chocolate chip muffins stacked on top of each other.
      Chocolate Strawberry Muffins
    • A matcha latte with cold foam on top dusted with matcha for garnish and a glass straw.
      Iced Vanilla Matcha Latte
    • A stack of pancakes with sprinkles with whipped cream and more sprinkles on top and maple syrup dripping down the sides.
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    • Bright orange popsicles on a white serving platter with ice, fresh passion fruit, and lime slices.
      Passion Fruit Popsicles

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