Cajun-spiced cauliflower pasta bake

Cajun-spiced cauliflower pasta bake

This hearty, cajuin-spiced pasta bake is packed with veggies. Cauliflower, peppers, sweetcorn and pasta are baked in a rich cheddar sauce.

Cajun-spiced cauliflower pasta bake

For comfort food at its finest, try our cauliflower and macaroni cheese.

  • Serves icon Serves 4
  • Time icon Hands-on time 20 min

This hearty, cajuin-spiced pasta bake is packed with veggies. Cauliflower, peppers, sweetcorn and pasta are baked in a rich cheddar sauce.

For comfort food at its finest, try our cauliflower and macaroni cheese.

Nutrition: per serving

Calories
519kcals
Fat
22.7g (11.8g saturated)
Protein
23.3g
Carbohydrates
52.1g (11.6g sugars)
Fibre
6.5g
Salt
2.2g

Ingredients

  • 1 small cauliflower, cut into florets, stalk roughly chopped (about 300g)
  • 175g small pasta shapes
  • Sweetcorn sliced from 2 cobs (use 250g frozen/tinned kernels if you like)
  • 500ml whole milk
  • 4 tsp cornflour
  • 1 tbsp olive oil
  • 175g mixed peppers, sliced
  • 1½ tbsp cajun or fajita seasoning
  • 150g cheddar, grated (vegetarian if you need it to be)
  • 1 spring onion, finely sliced, to serve

You’ll also need

  • Medium-large baking dish
  • Food processor or blender
Sticky screen? No thanks! Tap to prevent your screen from going off while cooking.

Method

  1. Heat the oven to 200ºC fan/gas 7. Bring a large pan of salted water to the boil. Cook the cauliflower florets for 3 minutes or until just tender, then transfer with a slotted spoon to a colander and cool under running water. Transfer the florets to a baking dish. Bring the pan back to the boil and cook the pasta for 1 minute less than the pack instructions. Drain, cool under cold water, then add to the dish with the cauliflower.
  2. Meanwhile, put the sweetcorn and 150ml of the milk in a food processor/ blender and whizz to combine. Add the cornflour and pulse again until smooth.
  3. Heat the oil in a pan over a high heat, then fry the peppers and all but a pinch of the spice mix for 2 minutes on each side to brown lightly. Add to the baking dish and gently mix everything together.
  4. Put the pan back on a medium heat, add the sweetcorn mixture and the rest of the milk, then bring to the boil, whisking often, until slightly thickened (about 5 minutes). Add most of the cheese and stir until melted and smooth. Pour the cheese mixture over the pasta bake, then sprinkle with the remaining cheese and spice mixture. Bake for 15-20 minutes until bubbling and golden on top. Sprinkle with the sliced spring onion and serve.

Nutrition

Nutrition: per serving
Calories
519kcals
Fat
22.7g (11.8g saturated)
Protein
23.3g
Carbohydrates
52.1g (11.6g sugars)
Fibre
6.5g
Salt
2.2g

delicious. tips

  1. Cajun spice mix combines chilli, cumin, coriander and paprika for a distinctive, earthy flavour. It works a treat to liven up ingredients such as pasta and cauliflower. Other ways to use it? Try rubbing it on steaks or oily fish.

Buy ingredients online

Recipe By:

Katy McClelland

Subscribe

Fancy getting a copy in print?

Subscribe to our magazine

Rate & review

Rate

Reviews

Share a tip

Or, how about...?

Save recipe icon Save recipe icon Save recipe

Cauliflower recipes

Cheesy cauliflower pasta

This veggie cauliflower pasta recipe successfully fuses British and Italian...

Save recipe icon Save recipe icon Save recipe

Cauliflower recipes

Roasted cauliflower and pesto pasta

More than a simple bowl of pasta – this recipe...

Save recipe icon Save recipe icon Save recipe

Mozzarella recipes

Cheat’s cauliflower tortelloni cheese

We’ve used ready-made cheese sauce and tortelloni to make this...

Save recipe icon Save recipe icon Save recipe

Italian pasta recipes

Sicilian-style pasta with cauliflower, currants, saffron and pine nuts

This vegetarian cauliflower, currant and pine nut pasta recipe is...

Subscribe to our magazine

Food stories, skills and tested recipes, straight to your door... Enjoy 5 issues for just £5 with our special introductory offer.

Subscribe

Unleash your inner chef

Looking for inspiration? Receive the latest recipes with our newsletter

We treat your data with care. See our privacy policy. By signing up, you are agreeing to delicious.’ terms and conditions. Unsubscribe at any time.