Our one pot Creamy Vegetable Pasta is the ultimate comfort food...the perfect balance of cheese and mixed vegetables! This dish is sure to please your kiddos. And the best news of all- it can be made in 28 minutes or less using just one pot! Try it out tonight!
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👍 Why We Love This Creamy Vegetable Pasta
Comfort food- Our creamy veggie pasta is belly-warming and the ultimate comfort food for the whole family.
Basic Ingredients- You are likely to have many of the ingredients in your panty or fridge/freezer.
Quick- Like all of our recipes, this mixed vegetable pasta can be made in 28 minutes or less.
Veggies! This dish is packed with veggies in a savory cheese sauce, so kids will get important nutrients while enjoying the creamy flavor of this dish.
ONE pot! You'll only need ONE pot for this mixed veggie pasta! Minimal mess, minimal cleanup!
If you love creamy pasta and rice dishes, be sure to also checkout our delicious Creamy Chicken Pea Skillet with Rice, Pasta with Cream Cheese Sauce, or our One Pot Lemony Garlic Pasta recipes!!
🛒 Ingredients
Notes on Ingredients:
Pasta- Small pasta (i.e. shells, macaroni or orecchiette) work great for this creamy vegetable pasta.
Onion & garlic- We think this adds a nice flavor, but skip or use onion and garlic powder if you are short on time.
Broth- We recommend Better than Bouillon. It's a condensed stock that comes in a tiny jar. Three benefits: (1) cuts back on space in the fridge, (2) saves money, (3) less waste/recycling on your conscience. The product comes in lots of flavors (chicken, beef, mushroom, etc.), with some varieties available in vegetarian, low sodium and organic.
Sour cream, milk, cheese- These dairy ingredients give the pasta its creamy texture and flavor, but feel free to choose lite versions if you want a lighter meal.
Mixed frozen veggies- We like a mixture of peas, green beans, corn and carrots, but many types of frozen veggies will work. Broccoli florets are also a great option.
👩🏾🍳 Instructions
Step 1. Cook onion and garlic in oil.
Step 2. Add broth, bring to a boil, and cook noodles.
Step 3. Stir in remaining ingredients (veggies, seasoning, cheese, sour cream and milk) and cook for 5-10 minutes.
Enjoy your creamy vegetable pasta!
🥄 Kids Steps:
- Help chop onion and garlic. We’re big fans of these Curious Chef kid-safe knives.
- Taste pasta to see if done. Kids love this job!
- Stir in frozen veggies. Our kids liked seeing how the veggies added color.
✔️ Expert Tips
- Make sure there is enough broth to just cover the mixed vegetable pasta. Feel free to add more as needed.
- Be careful not to overcook the pasta so that it doesn't become mushy. We recommend smaller pastas which are less likely to stick to the pan and tend to cook more evenly.
- If making ahead, add some liquid while reheating, like broth or cream, as the liquid is quickly absorbed by the pasta when stored.
🧂 Variations and Substitutions
- If you want to add protein, chicken or shrimp are extremely delicious additions to this creamy veggie pasta dish!
- Add or swap veggies. Swap your frozen veggie mix of peas, green beans, corn for broccoli florets or cauliflower.
- Change up the pasta. Any small, ridged pastas will work well since they tend to trap sauce in their ridges.
- Add heat, like red pepper flakes, for some exta spice!
- Make this dish glute-free by using a gluten-free pasta. We like Ancient Harvest quinoa pasta (just be careful not to overcook cause it can get mushy) and Trader Joe's Organic Brown Rice & Quinoa Fusilli Pasta. Another option is rice noodles. You should also double check the ingredients in the chicken broth you're using. Some broths and stocks contain gluten or traces of gluten.
🥖 Serving and Side Suggestions
Serve this creamy vegetable pasta by itself or alongside your favorite protein or sandwich. Panko Crusted Pork Chops, Turkey Burger Sliders or these Roast Beef Mini Sandwiches work especially well. A simple side salad, baguette for toasted garlic bread are also wonderful sides for this dish.
🧊 Storing Leftovers
For best results, store our mixed vegetable pasta in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 2-3 days and reheat in the microwave.
This pasta also freezes nicely in an air tight container. We recommend cooking your pasta separate from the sauce if you plan to freeze this dish. That way, the pasta won't be mushy from having absorbed the sauce.
❓FAQs
Yes, whole wheat pasta works well. We just recommend a small whole-wheat pasta.
We like a frozen veggie mix of peas, green beans, corn and carrots, but many types of frozen veggies will work, including broccoli florets.
It is not recommended that you eat this vegetable pasta cold, as the sauce hardens when refrigerated. When reheating, we recommend adding add some liquid, like broth or cream, as the liquid is quickly absorbed by the pasta when stored.
👶🏾 Tips for Picky Eaters
Kids pick the noodles. Let your kids select the pasta. Any small pasta with grooves works really well, i.e. shells, macaroni, orecchiette, farfalle (bowtie), rotini, etc.
Make a face! Some kids can't handle sauces with potentially unidentifiable ingredients. To ease this, have fun and make a face on their plate with the food. I made eyes and nose with dollops of the sauce mixture, and then used the pasta to make a mouth and eyebrows.
Kids pick a side! Rolls, a side salad, carrot sticks, celery sticks (peeled), and/or sliced cucumbers all compliment this creamy vegetable pasta nicely!
🧶 Crafts for this Recipe
Need a craft to keep kids busy while you cook this mixed vegetable pasta? We've got you! Use extra dry shell pasta to make Play Food Mac and Cheese or this adorable Falling Leaves Tree Craft.
🍽 Other Pasta Dishes
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🥣 Creamy Vegetable Pasta
Ingredients
- 2 Tablespoon cooking oil
- ½ medium yellow onion chopped
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 2-3 cups chicken broth/stock
- 8 ounce shell pasta (macaroni or orecchiette work too)
- 10 ounce frozen vegetable mix (peas, green beans, corn, carrots)
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon pepper
- ½ teaspoon paprika
- 3 ounce sour cream
- ½ cup milk or cream
- ½ cup parmesan cheese shredded
Instructions
- Heat medium-sized pan on medium heat. Once heated, add cooking oil and onion and garlic. Cook 2-3 mins.
- Add chicken broth, increase heat and bring to a boil. Stir in pasta and cook according to package instructions.
- Add remaining ingredients: frozen veggies, seasoning, sour cream, milk/cream, and parmesan. Cook on medium for 5-8 minutes until ingredients are blended and warmed through.
Notes
- Make sure there is enough broth to just cover the pasta. Feel free to add more as needed.
- Be careful not to overcook the pasta so that it does not become mushy. We recommend smaller pastas which are less likely to stick to the pan and tend to cook more evenly.
- If you want to add protein, chicken is an extremely delicious addition to this dish!
Nutrition
*Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet. While we are not certified nutritionists, we work with a Wordpress-integrated nutrition API to calculate our recipes' ingredient values.
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Love this dish!! so easy and my kids ate their whole helping! there hasn’t been a dish yet that i haven’t printed out and added to my recipe book ! thanks ladies!
Thanks so much, Carly! ❤️❤️❤️