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Cauliflower Scampi in Lemon Garlic White Wine Sauce needs only a handful of ingredients and is ready in less than 30 minutes. It’s a weeknight winner!
My last cauliflower recipe – my Roasted Cauliflower Salad w/ Lentils & Grapes – was back in March, so you know I was due for another one. You guys continue to love on my Crispy Baked Cauliflower Tacos and my Buffalo Cauliflower Bites, so I can only assume you love this white veggie as much as I do.
Today I’m bringing you this quick and easy pasta recipe with roasted cauliflower, lots of lemon, and a garlic white wine sauce. It comes together in less than 30 minutes, so it’s perfect for a weeknight. But it’s also classy enough for entertaining!
Scampi is a type of lobster, or more accurately, the meaty tail of a certain type of lobster. Here in the U.S. though, it generally refers to a dish made with shrimp in a sauce consisting of garlic, butter, and wine. Sometimes, breadcrumbs or Parmesan cheese are added as well. You can’t really go wrong with lots of garlic, lemon and wine, right?
Of course, we’re making this scampi without shrimp or lobster. Instead, I roasted cauliflower with olive oil and lemon juice until tender. It’s SO GOOD that it almost didn’t make it to the pasta…I was eating it straight from the pan! So, take note, that this roasted cauliflower by itself would make a great side dish for any other meal you’re planning too.
Cauliflower is a cruciferous vegetable and, although it is white in color, has many of the same health benefits that you find in the cruciferous green super food veggies like broccoli and kale. It contains many antioxidants, as well as being high in vitamins and minerals like vitamin C, K, B’s, folate, fiber, potassium, healthy omega-3 fats, and even protein.
Growing up we ate a lot of cauliflower. Back then I liked it best steamed, tossed in butter and breadcrumbs, and drizzled with malt vinegar. I know that might sound weird, but trust me, it was fabulous!
Since I love cauliflower and breadcrumbs together so much, and because breadcrumbs and parmesan are sometimes used in scampi dishes, I added my own little version of this here. I blitzed hulled pumpkin seeds (which have a great cheesy like flavor that I LOVE in pesto) with nutritional yeast (also providing a cheesy flavor) in a coffee grinder.
Sprinkled over the top of this Cauliflower Scampi in Lemon Garlic White Wine Sauce, it provides a similar texture and flavor all without dairy or carbs. (Not that I’m afraid of carbs – clearly I’m not – this is a pasta dish after all…just pointing out you can have that breadcrumb texture without bread when you desire.)
The sauce makes just enough so the noodles are coated, but not swimming in it. The perfect amount if you ask me. Light enough for a quick summer meal, but filling enough to be winter comfort food. Delicious all year round!
I hope you love this recipe as much as we do! If you tried it, please use the rating system in the recipe card and leave a comment below with your feedback.
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Cauliflower Scampi in Lemon Garlic White Wine Sauce
Ingredients
- 1 head cauliflower (chopped into bite size florets)
- ½ tsp Himalayan pink salt
- 2 tbsp olive oil (divided)
- 1 tbsp lemon juice
- 3 cloves garlic (minced)
- ½ cup dry white wine
- juice of 1 lemon
- 1 cup low-sodium vegetable broth
- handful fresh parsley (chopped)
- pinch red pepper flakes
- ½ lb linguine* (cooked according to package directions) (or pasta of choice – spaghetti or even zoodles would work)
Vegan Parmesan garnish, optional
- 2 tbsp pepitas (hulled pumpkin seeds)
- 2 tbsp nutritional yeast
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.
- Toss the cauliflower florets in 1 tbsp olive oil, 1 tbsp lemon juice and ½ tsp salt. Spread onto the prepared baking sheet in one even layer and bake for 15 minutes. Shake the pan to toss the cauliflower around, let it settle back into an even layer, and bake another 10 minutes.
- Meanwhile, cook the linguine according to package directions.
- While the pasta and cauliflower are cooking, heat 1 tbsp olive oil over medium heat in a large pan on the stove. Add the garlic and sauté 1 minute. Add the white wine and simmer 3-4 minutes until the liquid reduces a bit.
- Add the lemon juice and broth and simmer 5 minutes.
- When the cauliflower is done, toss it into the white wine sauce. Add the cooked pasta and toss to combine. Add the fresh chopped parsley and red pepper flakes. Taste and adjust seasonings. Add a little more lemon juice or salt if needed.
- In a coffee grinder or small food processor, grind the pepitas with the nutritional yeast into a course powder.
- Sprinkle the pepita mixture, if using, over the cauliflower and linguine and serve immediately.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition values are calculated using online calculators and are estimates only. Please verify using your own data.
Elle says
Delicious, prepared as written. My husband and I had second helpings. This is a new favorite.
Jenn Sebestyen says
I’m so glad you loved it! Thank you!
Joan Ramler says
Love the lemon and wine combination!!! Fresh and bright! We love anything cauliflower so the roasted cauliflower suits us perfectly.
Jenn Sebestyen says
I’m so glad you love it, Joan. Thank you!
Mindy says
Fresh and delicious!
Jenn Sebestyen says
Thanks, Mindy! Glad you enjoyed it!
Lauren K says
Loved this recipe! We made it with gluten free pasta. All of the flavors from the wine, garlic and lemon combine so nicely for a delicious dish. It was quick and easy to make, so it’s a great weeknight meal!
Jenn Sebestyen says
Thank you so much for your feedback, Lauren! So happy to hear you loved it!
Elizabeth says
The cauliflower and noodles started out great. I thought the raw flavoured cauliflower was a good sign. I was wrong. The dish was dry and bitter. My man kept adding chili pepper flakes to get rid of the bitter taste. We dont like wine. That’s probably where this recipe went wrong for us. Sorry. Wont make it again. It was fun to try some thing new though.
Bonnie Lapen says
I’ll be repeating this tasty dish and also passing this recipe on to friends. Loved it!
Bonnie Lapen says
Five stars on this! Delicious
Jenn Sebestyen says
Thank you so much! It makes me so happy that you love it!
Chris Voci-Nam says
Made this last night – ANOTHER WINNER!
Jenn Sebestyen says
Yay!! Thank you, Chris!
Benjamin says
This was wonderful. Normally I always need to tweak recipes but this one was great right off the bat.
Jenn S. says
Thank you, Benjamin! So happy to hear that!
Shannon says
I made this tonight and WOW! It was so delicious! My husband and I are happily stuffed 😊 Thank you for this delicious scampi! We didn’t miss the shrimp one bit and it completely satisfied our craving! Yum!
Jenn S. says
Thank you for this awesome feedback! I’m so happy to know you loved it. 🙂
Diana says
So a few days later…but we finally had a chance to make this…oh my word! This is so good, it’s unbelievable! I can’t say enough about it. Thank you so much for posting this recipe!
Jenn S. says
Yay!! Thank you, Diana! I’m so happy you loved it!!
Diana says
I see that people have tried this and I would like to, but it doesn’t give the “Garlic White Wine Sauce” I think the link is deactivated. I “searched” your website and it does come up that way either. Please help me out…this looks awesome and I can’t wait to try it.
Jenn S. says
Hi, Diana. The ingredients and instructions for the sauce are all there. It’s not a separate recipe. Hope you enjoy it.
Diana says
oh boy…I sure missed that! Thanks for bringing to my attention…it’s on the menu for dinner tonight!
Dev says
The calcium count in the nutritional values seems wrong.
Jenn S. says
Thanks for pointing that out, Dev. It was indeed wrong. I’ve updated the stats.
Andria says
I tried this recipe this week and let me tell you its off the charts! The garlic, white wine and lemon combo oh my! The amazing aroma filled the house and i was already drooling! ;-P I will def be making this again and again. Thank you so much! <3
Jenn S. says
Thank you so much, Andria! So happy you loved it!! Can’t go wrong with pasta and wine, right?! Thanks so much for stopping by and leaving your feedback!
Alisa Fleming says
You know, I haven’t had a lot of luck getting cauliflower sauce to go over in our house. Rice, yes, sauce, not so much. But your use of olive oil and wine just might do the trick!
Jenn S. says
Well, wine does make everything better. Baked tofu would also be yummy in this if you want to replace the cauliflower.
Dianne says
This looks like my kinda meal! I want to drink that sauce with a straw!
Jenn S. says
I say go for it! It’s got wine after all! 🙂