Creamy and savory, this shell pasta in cauliflower béchamel sauce with kale and corn is a yummy, veggie-packed dinner. The light and silky béchamel sauce is dairy-free, vegan and oil-free, so feel free to drench your pasta with it.

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Béchamel sauce, or besciamella in Italian, is a white sauce traditionally made of butter, milk and flour. This "mother sauce" is used in many different dishes, like lasagne.
This cauliflower béchamel sauce is a veggie-packed, dairy-free, flour-free alternative that does not require fat to bring the sauce together, but is inspired by traditional white sauce. We've used it to smother shell pasta, kale and corn.
🧄 Very useful ingredient notes
- Conchiglie shell pasta - shell pasta works really well with the creamy béchamel sauce, since the concave shape of the pasta scoops up the sauce, along with the small pieces of corn and kale.
- Kale - Use chopped curly green or purple kale. Surprisingly delicious in pasta, we frequently add kale to our vegan mac and cheese, too. If you're not a fan of kale on it's own, give it a try with pasta. You might be surprised at it's tenderness and how well the slight bitterness pairs so well with the sweet corn and silky creamy pasta.
- Corn - Use sweet corn kernels, either frozen or canned (drain them, if using canned)
- Cauliflower - Fresh cauliflower makes up the bulk of the sauce, so it is a light and veggie-loaded option for a pasta sauce. Use pre-cut cauliflower florets to save time prepping.
- Ground nutmeg - a pinch of nutmeg is authentic and traditional to béchamel sauces, but you can omit it, if you don't have it. Also, only use a pinch! Don't go overboard.
📋 Substitutions and variations
Here are some suitable substitutions for the ingredients:
- Shell pasta - use medium shells (another name for Italian conchiglie) or another medium sized pasta, like casarecce, gemelli, penne, rotini, gigli or campanelle. You could also use whole wheat or gluten-free pasta instead, if you prefer.
- Cauliflower - use frozen cauliflower florets/pieces instead of fresh
- Garlic cloves - substitute with minced garlic (1-2 teaspoons) or ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- Almond milk - substitute with another unsweetened, unflavored plant-based milk like soy milk. You'll want to use a neutral-tasting milk here.
- Kale - substitute with spinach, swiss chard or other greens, broccoli or frozen California blend, frozen green peas, cooked asparagus or cooked mushrooms
Here are some ideas for variations on this recipe:
- Creamy broccoli pasta - use broccoli instead of kale and corn, like we did in this Gigli Pasta with Broccoli and Vegan White Sauce
- Creamy asparagus pasta - use sautéed asparagus instead of kale and corn, like we did in this Vegan Creamy Mushroom Asparagus Pasta
- Cajun creamy pasta - Mix in some of Evelyn's no-salt cajun seasoning or cajun salt for a creole twist on this creamy pasta
🔪 Instructions
Step-by-step instructions for making this creamy shell pasta.
- Step 1: Make the cauliflower béchamel sauce, first. To do this, boil cauliflower until tender, then drain it and add to blender with plant-based milk, garlic, nutmeg, salt and pepper.
- Step 2: Blend sauce until completely smooth. Taste and adjust seasoning or add more almond milk if it's too thick.
- Step 3: Then, make the pasta with kale and corn. Boil pasta in well-salted water
- Step 4: Add corn kernels to the pasta at the end of it's cooking time.
- Step 5: Add chopped kale.
- Step 6: Stir together and continue to cook until the pasta is done.
- Step 7: Reserve some pasta water, then drain pasta and return to pot
- Step 8: Add prepared sauce and a little pasta water.
- Step 9: Stir everything together to combine. Taste and season with salt and pepper, as needed.
- Step 10: Serve hot!
Expert tips
- Be sure to cook the cauliflower until it's tender, so you have a smooth, creamy sauce.
- Reserve leftover cauliflower béchamel sauce to add to reheated pasta the next day, as the pasta will soak up most of the sauce as it is stored in the refrigerator.
- Use a high speed blender to make your sauce silky smooth. I use a BlendTec, but another high speed blender like Vitamix or Ninja should work just fine.
- For a more mild garlic flavor, you can boil it with the cauliflower, instead of adding it raw to the blender. Or, you can sauté it first.
- If you're a garlic lover who measures garlic with your heart ♡ like me, then feel free to add more!
🥡 Make ahead and storage tips
Make this pasta ahead of time and store in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. The pasta will dry out a bit in the refrigerator, so it's best to reserve some sauce to mix in when reheating the pasta in the microwave.
If you don't have any extra sauce, add a little plant-based milk to re-hydrate.
The cauliflower sauce can be made ahead of time and stored in the refrigerator. It's good stored in the fridge in an airtight container for up to 5 days. To re-heat, pour sauce in a sauce pan and heat on low heat.
❓ FAQ
No, traditional béchamel is made with butter and dairy milk, which are animal products and not vegan.
Cauliflower béchamel is an alternative way of making traditional white sauce (also known as béchamel or alfredo sauce). It uses cauliflower as the base, instead of the typical flour, milk and butter.
🗺 Cultural influences
Conchiglie is a type of pasta from Italy. The name is derived from the Italian word for seashell: conchiglia. In Italy, you may find it in colorful varieties, with tomato or spinach extract coloring the dough.
Conchiglie corresponds to medium shells. Conchigliette corresponds to small shell pasta. Conchiglioni corresponds to jumbo shell pasta.
It is commonly known as "shells" or "seashells" in America. The concave shape of the pasta allows sauce to pool inside.
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📖 Recipe
Shell Pasta in Cauliflower Béchamel Sauce with Kale and Corn
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 whole head of cauliflower broken into florets (about 2 pounds or 9 cups)
- 16 ounces conchiglie pasta also known as medium shells
- 4 cups kale chopped
- 12 ounces sweet corn kernels frozen or canned, drained
- ½ cup almond milk unsweetened, unflavored, plain
- ½ teaspoon sea salt
- ⅛ teaspoon freshly cracked black pepper
- 2-3 cloves garlic
- pinch nutmeg optional
Instructions
- Start making the cauliflower béchamel sauce first: Add cauliflower to medium saucepan and cover with water. Bring to a boil. Turn heat to medium and gently boil the cauliflower until it is fork tender.1 whole head of cauliflower
- Meanwhile, for the pasta, bring a large pot of well-salted water to a boil. Cook conchiglie (shell) pasta according to package instructions.16 ounces conchiglie pasta
- For the kale and corn: When pasta has 2 minutes left to cook, stir in the kale and corn to allow it cook along with the pasta.4 cups kale, 12 ounces sweet corn kernels
- Drain cauliflower and garlic. Transfer drained cauliflower to blender, along with garlic, salt, pepper, nutmeg (if using) and almond milk. Blend until completely smooth and thick. Taste and adjust seasoning or add more almond milk if it's too thick.1 whole head of cauliflower, ½ teaspoon sea salt, ⅛ teaspoon freshly cracked black pepper, 2-3 cloves garlic, pinch nutmeg, ½ cup almond milk
- Reserve 1 cup of pasta water before draining pasta. Drain pasta, kale and corn in large colander and then return to pot.
- Place pot over low heat. Pour enough of the cauliflower béchamel sauce into the pasta to coat everything. You may or may not have some leftover. Add ¼ cup reserved pasta water, if needed. Stir and then taste it. Adjust salt and pepper, to taste. Turn off heat. Serve hot.
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