What’s creamy, delicious, and red all over? Beet pasta sauce! This easy recipe (made with no nuts) features roasted beets blended with goat and ricotta cheeses. Onion, garlic, and lemon contribute additional flavor. You have to try this beautiful dish for a vegetarian dinner!
Who could resist pink pasta? I mean, come on, this dish has the BEST color! It also has an incredible flavor.
Beets and goat cheese have always been a match made in heaven, and they continue to be in this beet pasta sauce. I added ricotta cheese for some extra creaminess, too! The cheeses make the sauce so luscious and satisfying, while the beets provide fiber, flavor, and nutrition. I honestly couldn’t get enough of it!
Serve this beautiful dish for Valentine’s Day or just any old weeknight dinner. It’s really easy to whip up, especially if you use pre-roasted beets. If you’re in the mood for more pink foods after you try this one, check out the Beet Pancakes, Slow Cooker Borscht, Beet Applesauce, and Strawberry Banana Beet Smoothie.
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Ingredients and Substitutions
- Beets: Use pre-roasted beets, such as Love Beets or the kind that Trader Joe’s sells, to save a lot of time. Canned beets also work! You can also roast beets yourself in advance. To roast a beet, trim off the stem and leaves. Scrub the beet clean. Rub with olive oil, then wrap up in a piece of aluminum foil. Bake on the center rack of the oven for 45 to 60 minutes until tender. When the beet is cool enough to touch, remove the skin with your fingers.
- Goat and ricotta cheeses: These creamy cheeses add a lot of flavor and texture. You can use all ricotta or all goat cheese instead of a combo, but the flavor of your beet pasta sauce will be different if you do. You could replace one of the cheeses with another creamy option, such as mascarpone or feta, if desired.
- Lemon juice: If you don’t have fresh lemons, try apple cider vinegar.
- Onion and garlic: I used yellow onion and fresh garlic.
- Salt and pepper
- Extra virgin olive oil
- Pasta: Penne, rigatoni, fusilli, bowtie, or any short cut pasta would work well, but the sauce also tastes delicious on spaghetti or fettuccine.
Instructions
The full recipe card with instructions and ingredients is at the bottom of the post. Here’s a preview of the very easy steps!
Prep the ingredients. Cook the onion and garlic, roast the beets if you don’t have pre-roasted ones, and get the pasta cooking.
Combine the ingredients for the sauce in a blender with a little bit of the pasta water.
Blend until smooth. Add pasta water to thin the sauce if needed.
Toss cooked pasta in the sauce, serve, and enjoy!
Storage and Reheating
Beet pasta sauce is very easy to make in advance. Keep in an airtight jar in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. When you want to eat it, heat it in a saucepan while you boil some pasta. Drain the pasta, toss, and serve.
Leftovers of pasta already tossed in the sauce can also be stored in the refrigerator in airtight containers for a few days. You can reheat the pasta in the microwave until warmed through.
To freeze this sauce, let it cool completely then transfer to a freezer-safe container. Seal, label, and freeze for up to 6 months. Let the sauce thaw in the fridge before reheating in a saucepan. You can reheat from frozen as well. Just be sure to stir frequently to prevent scorching.
Serving Ideas
Beet pasta sauce is obviously delicious over pasta, but you can also use it in other ways. Use it as a dressing for a grain bowl or as a sauce for shredded chicken. It can make a great base for pizza as well!
More Beet Recipes
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📖 Recipe
Beet Pasta Sauce
Equipment
Ingredients
- 16 ounces pasta of choice
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil - divided
- 1 cup diced onion
- 2 cloves garlic - minced
- 8 to 10 ounces roasted beets - about 3 small beets; can also use canned beets
- ¼ cup reserved pasta water - don't forget this!!
- ¾ cup ricotta cheese - whole or part skim
- ½ cup goat cheese
- 3 tablespoons lemon juice
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Instructions
- Bring a pot of salted water to a boil. Cook the pasta according to package instructions. Reserve about a cup of pasta water before draining the pasta.
- While the pasta cooks, warm a tablespoon of the olive oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add the onion and cook for a few minutes until softened. Stir in the garlic and cook for another couple of minutes. Remove from heat.
- In a blender, combine the onion and garlic, beets, ricotta and goat cheese, lemon juice, salt, pepper, the other tablespoon of olive oil, and ¼ cup of pasta water. Blend until smooth and creamy. If needed, add a few more dashes of pasta water to thin the sauce to your desired consistency.
- Toss the cooked pasta in the beet sauce. Serve, and enjoy!
- Leave a rating or review by tapping the stars on this recipe card (above) or in the comments section (at the end of the post)!
Notes
- This recipe yields about 3 cups sauce. You can make the sauce in advance and store in a sealed jar in the fridge for up to 5 days. Reheat in a saucepan when you want to serve it.
- You can also freeze the sauce. Let it cool completely and transfer to a freezer-safe container. Seal, label, and freeze for up to 6 months.
Nutrition
Enjoy your pink pasta! – Lizzie
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