Creamy Green Leek & Pea Pasta
25 min
Meal
Servings
Total
25 minPrep
10 minCook
15 minSwap out
soy
gluten
Free from
peanut
tree nut
sesame
Ingredients
-
1large leek
-
1large broccoli
-
1 Tbsp (15 mL)olive oil
-
4cloves garlic
-
2stalks green onion
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1fresh jalapeño, seeds removed
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1 tsp (6 g)salt
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1½ cups (201 g)frozen green peas
-
⅔ cup (127 g)frozen spinach
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½ tspdried basil
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¼ tspdried oregano
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¼ tspdried mint leaves (optional)
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4 cups (300 g)dry fusilli pasta
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1 cup (240 mL)soy cooking cream
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½lemon, juiced
Optional garnish
-
fresh basil
-
lemon slices
Directions
- Prepare the leek by cutting off the root and the overly fibrous green top*. Cut the leek in half, wash in between the layers, and then thinly slice the leek. Thinly slice the garlic and green onions, and mince the jalapeño.
- Cut the stem off the head of broccoli. Cutaway the fibrous outer layer of the stem. Chop the remaining stem into bite-sized pieces. The green tops of the broccoli can be cut into small bite-sized pieces.
- To a large pot on high heat, add the olive oil, and when hot, add in the leek, broccoli stems, garlic, green onion, jalapeño, and salt*. Cook this for 5 minutes, or until the leeks become soft and translucent.
- Then add the peas, spinach, basil, oregano, and mint, cooking for another 5 - 6 minutes.
- Meanwhile, cook the pasta according to the package instructions, adding the broccoli florets in the last couple of minutes.
- Just before draining it all, scoop out ½ cup (120 mL) cooking water from pasta and add to the pan with the vegetables. Then drain the pasta and broccoli florets.
- Add the cooking cream to the pot with the vegetables, and stir to combine. You can leave this pasta sauce chunky as is, or make it smooth by blending it all up using an immersion blender or standing blender. We chose to blend about half of our sauce, making it part-chunky and part-smooth.
- Add the drained pasta and broccoli to the sauce, along with the lemon juice, and toss to coat.
- Serve while hot and garnish as desired. Enjoy!
Notes
- * This can be discarded or saved for homemade vegetable stock.
- * The salt here helps to draw the water out of the veggies, which helps it all cook faster.
Storage
- Store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days.
Let us know what you think
Plate method
The Plate Method is a visual tool that helps us ensure our dietary needs are on track. Touch the image below to see how this recipe measures up.
Grains & Starches 52%
• dry fusilli pasta
Proteins 10%
• frozen green peas
Fruits & Veggies 38%
• large leek
• large broccoli
• clove garlic
• stalk green onion
• fresh jalapeño
• frozen spinach
• lemon
Calcium
No significant sources of calciumFat
• olive oil
• soy cooking cream
Nutrition info
We believe that focusing on numbers can harm our relationship with food. Instead, our philosophy is to Nourish the Cells & the Soul. If you require specific nutrition information due to a medical condition, please consult with a dietitian or physician. The nutritional information provided is composed with the utmost care. However, we cannot guarantee the correctness of the displayed values, see also our disclaimer.
Watch it step-by-step!
Discussion & Rating
I love this recipe!! I've made this pasta sauce many times and it is absolutely delicious!!
My boyfriend sometimes mealpreps this recipe for four lunches, he really likes it! We don't change the recipe, except that we sometimes use either chickpea or red lentil pasta to add a bit more protein.
Tastes delicious! :)
This is delicious - tastes so fresh. I made it with gluten free pasta and lots of fresh herbs. Now added to my ‘make again’ folder.
I made this for dinner tonight. It is very yummy. Used whole grain penne, because I couldn't find fusilli. I think this is the first time I've cooked with leeks! Exciting! I did add a bit more salt before serving. Thanks for sharing this recipe!
Another amazing recipe!! So tasty and easy to make! I don’t have an immersion blender or standing blender so decided to use my Nutri Ninja blender to blend up half of the veggie mixture.. it worked but I would not recommend as it did result in an explosion of sorts.. 😅 The pasta was still 10/10!! I think maybe even my favourite recipe so far! 💚
Another delicious meal (: swaped peas for edamame and pasta for chickpea pasta to add extra protein and loved it!
I just tried this... omg it's awesome. I made some modifications: used macaroni pasta(200 gm only), oat evaporated milk instead of soy cream (I think any non dairy milk would go perfectly), and sprinkled nutritional yeast on top. I also used fresh spinach instead of frozen. It turned out very well. I added some extra salt, white pepper, and more mint and basil on top. Thank you for all your amazing recipes. 👏 :)
Thank you for this recipe! I have been overeating for a long time and now struggle to find recipes that are healthy but filling and satisfying. This one is definitely it! I put two full cups of peas and half the indicated cream and it was still very creamy and smooth.
Delicious, wholesome and fast recipe, ideal for students at their busy times!
I wasn't certain how this was going to taste but I'm so glad I gave it a chance! It's a wonderful, creamy recipe that is going to be made when I get my pasta cravings. Thank you, Sadia!
Quick and yummy way to make anyone eat more greens :) the mint creates really interesting and non-conventional taste! Well done Sadia and the whole PUL team <3
My go-to pasta recipe, very simple and delicious! :)
Super easy and quick to make, creamy, and absolutely delicious 😋
Great recipe and easy to make! 👍
This recipe quickly became part of our fortnightly meal rotation! It's super easy to make, and absolutely packed with flavour. It's also super forgiving if you use substitutes, or add extra veggies. We tend to add some sweet corn along with the peas for a bit of extra sweetness. Definitely recommend!
So easy and comforting, even the process of cooking all those greens makes me smile! And it's the recipe that made me give leeks a chance.
One of my all time favorite comfort meals! So delicious in both taste and texture and really easy to make - I like to serve it with some pan-fried gnocchi, and it's always a big hit!
such a wonderful new tasting recipe! Ugh... I just love all your pastas so much. Unfortunately, I think I've now run through all the pastas posted. I love them all and will make them a million times over.
Hi PUL team Can i store the left over sauce in the freezer?
Hi everyone! I tried the Creamy green leak and pea pasta recipe. Very delicious. I didn't have soy cream so I substituted with some coconut milk. It looks, smells and tastes amazing. Thank you so much!
This recipe is really yummy and it's the second time I'm making it! Unfortuneatly the supermarket had no soy cooking cream, so I've had to use vegan sour cream instead. Hopefully it will still be nice!
One of my all-time favourite recipes!
This was delicious and simple to make! Lots of greens here. I used frozen broccoli. This would be even tastier with a side of lemon if I hadn’t run out. I’m definitely keeping this one! 9/10! Thank you for your healthy and delicious recipes.
Big Fan,
Nat
This a recepie from the staple: simple delicious!
I swapped the Broccoli to green beans, and made it with coconutmilk and it was very nice.
I love it because it' s not the usual tomato, Paprika, Curry Mix. IT' s different in taste and Texture.
The herbs do the Trick.
Thanks for a NEW taste experience.
My family and I quite enjoyed this dish!
This was so easy and satisfying, and felt so surprisingly light for pasta. It's super swap-friendly, too, and I've made it with whatever veggies and "creams" I had available and it comes out lekker.
Super easy and delicious recipe! This is one of my regular recipe for dinner / lunch now. For anyone who couldn't find soy cream, you may consider mixing homemade cashew cream and unsweetened organic soy together with a 1 to 1 ratio. :)
I made this dish for my parents who are mostly used to meats cooked the Romanian way, really heavy and tasty so I was afraid they might not enjoy it to the fullest. Not only did they enjoy it but were asking me when I was cooking it again. I love how all the tastes combine, the texture is amazing and the green colour... amazing experience is a dish!
I honestly can't tell you how much I love this pasta recipe!! It's so flavoursome and creamy and to me, it just feels like a warm hug! I made it for my friends once too, and they loved it as well :) It takes me a little more time to make it because of my incredibly slow vegetable cutting, but it's always 100% worth it!!
I love making this pasta for non-vegans and picky eaters. Great crowd pleaser that has layers of flavor and makes any dinner seem a bit more fancy. I use this recipe all the time!
This has to be one of my favorite recipes on this blog. All the green veggies in this dish make eating pasta for me so guilt free. The lemon gives you that hit of freshness and zest that you don’t want to skip on it. Thank you pickup limes team for make delicious vegan recipes. My non vegan partner raves about this dish and asks me to make it on the regular! 10/10
I'm a student and this receipe helps me prep a healthy meal for half of my week ! It's really delicious.
One of my classic recipes now. It tastes so delicious and is really easy!
A great budget recipe aaaand a super lovely way to incorporate more green veggies into my everyday meals! It held very well as leftovers for lunches and dinners, and the coconut flavor wasn't too strong but it kept the consistency creamy. Definitely recommend using the lemon juice at the end, it always brightens things up!
This is great. Really jam packed full of veggies and so moreish.
We loved this recipe’s fresh greens and its herbaceousness! And it was really quick to throw together. Yum!
Original and a nice way to eat a lot of greens !
This one is on regular biweekly rotation in our house, so good!
This pasta was simple and very flavorful, we loved the broccoli and mint, and also the touch of spice from the jalapeno. Hearty enough as the main course, and also really good the next day straight from the fridge.
Looking into the ingredients, I really did not have high expectations, but I was curious to try and you bet... My whole family completely loved it! It is extremely tasty and well-worth trying!!
Super easy and really tasty! This one is part of my regular rotation. Sometimes, I kick it up a notch by adding some baked tofu cubes that were marinated in thyme/other herbs and olive oil, or even some vegan feta.
Thank you so much for this green pasta recipe 🤤😋🤗 My kids love it, so they get more greens 🥬 without making weird faces and noises 😉😄🤩
This is one of my favorite PUL recipes. I make it once a month, and it's such a great way to eat more veggies!
Absolutely love this recipe! I've made it so many times and just keep coming back to it!
Absolutely delicious recipe! I've made this several times and it's one of my favourite pastas ever! It has opened my eyes to so many possible veggie sauces for pasta.
I've made this twice– the first time it was amazing and a HUGE hit! The second time it was pretty eh. I don't really know what changed, but I'm planning on giving it another go since it's a great way to get some greens in and so easy. I served some as pasta salad too and that was almost better than having it warm!
Okay - this is seriously our "go to" meal whenever we're in a pinch for time and want a meat-free meal. The flavour, texture and everything about this is amazing. Thank you so much for sharing!
This was really delicious. I was sceptical about the coconut cream but it was so lovely.
I loved this pasta! I a big fan of green peas, so I used the closer to 2 or 2.5 cups, but overall highly recommend this quick and flavorful pasta!
This is now my go-to pasta meal. It refrigerators really well, great for meal prep! I like to roast the broccoli in the oven instead of cooking it with the pasta - takes longer but you get some crispy bits and tasty browning that I love.
We've made this so many times already!!! And every time it's a hit:) Just so awesome how there is so much nutrition compacted into this one meal, and still tastes amazing. Usually when there is greens in a dish, people don't eat it, but this pasta just about changed that:)
Thanks SO MUCH for this amazing recipe!!
This pasta was so delicious! For substitutions, I used frozen broccoli, Italian seasoning instead of basil and oregano, frozen edamame for the peas and canned full-fat coconut milk for the soy cooking cream. Oh, I also omitted the jalapeño. I enjoyed it so much, thank you!
I find this good if made just for two days!
Hi Sadia,
I cannot find jalapeños where I live (Switzerland), is there another chilly pepper you would recommend?
Thank you a lot for providing swaps in the ingredients, they are super useful to keep following your recipes!
Hi Sadia,
I have made this recipe many times in the past few years. Every time I make it, it tastes better. My husband and kids love it!
Thank you for sharing these nutritious recipes!
I did this recipe for lunch and of course I expected it to be good but it was even better than I imagined. I put 450 g of frozen soy beans (for 5 people) instead of green peas and it was perfect. Thanks for this recipe !
Thanks for sharing a wonderfu healthy green recipe. I was wondering if I can use fresh spinach instead of frozen spinach?
This was my first Pick Up Limes recipe and it did not disappoint. Excellent. New to eating vegetarian/vegan and found your website. Thank you so much for your amazing content and easy to follow recipes/videos. Your interactive website is incredible. Excited and eager to try many many more!! Many thanks.