This simple Baked Queso Taco Pasta is the absolute perfect pantry staple recipe. It's made with my favorite cashew queso, dry pasta, and the BEST salsa. Making this vegetarian AND Dairy free. Also, inspired by the viral TikTok pasta bake made with feta that everyone has been going crazy about!
This is my first entry for Sam's Fresh Salsa Blogger Recipe Contest! As always , all opinions are my own and I really love this salsa!
Did I mention this recipe is also NO-BOIL??? Meaning you throw everything into a 9X13 baking dish, cover with aluminum foil, and walk away until the timer goes off! I love this no-fuss weeknight dinner!
I decided to go with a dairy free and gluten free vegetarian dish because, well I noticed there weren't too many vegetarian options on my blog and I felt I needed to change that!
Plus more veggies never hurt anyone!
I have also been OBSESSED with this queso dip I have been making every week out of cashews, some salsa, some S&P, and water. Just toss it all in a high powered blender and that's it! SO easy and doesn't require soaking the cashews before hand!
It's an absolute MUST for this recipe! Even Jake LOVED it and he wasn't too sure about the it not-actually-being-cheese-thing. He simply grabbed his bowl of tortilla chips and kept dipping!
So I knew I had to make a queso macaroni and cheese dish with this.But elevated with more veggies and incorporate MORE of the tangy flavor with fresh salsa!
THE PROCESS
The process for this Queso Pasta Bake is pretty straight forward. Make the queso first in the blender and set aside.
I like to saute my peppers and onions first (but completely optional). I typically do this while the oven preheats to batch my time!
Then, add the queso, peppers and onions to the bottom of a 9X13 baking dish. Throw in a box of your favorite pasta THIS is my go to. Then top with the broth, milk, and spices. Cover and bake for 40 minutes until pasta is done.
Whether you make this on an average weeknight or a fun Friday night fiesta, I know you're gonna love this queso mac n cheese bake!
Why use this queso cheese versus the store-bought stuff?
- I know EXACTLY what went into (AMAZING minimally or not processed ingredients)
- It tastes AMAZING. Like super creamy, hint of taco flavor, and the tangy-spicy from the salsa verde. SO GOOD.
Baked Queso Taco Pasta [Dairy Free]
- Total Time: 50 minutes
- Yield: 6-8servings 1x
- Diet: Gluten Free
Description
This simple Baked Queso Taco Pasta is the absolute perfect pantry staple recipe. It's made with my favorite cashew queso, dry pasta, and the BEST salsa. Making this vegetarian AND Dairy free. Also, inspired by the viral TikTok pasta bake made with feta that everyone has been going crazy about!
Ingredients
- 12 oz of your favorite pasta (I love Jovial or Banza here for gluten-free options)
- 1 cup of Cashew queso (see below)
- 1 cup of vegetable broth
- ½ cup of oat milk (or your milk of choice)
- 1 red bell pepper, sliced into thin strips
- 1 red onion, sliced thin
- 1 tsp of sea salt
- 1 tsp pepper
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- ½ cup of Sam's Fresh Salsa (I used the Cantina flavor here!)
- Cilantro,avocado, and green onion for garnish
Cashew Queso
- 1 cup of cashews
- ½ cup of water
- 2 tbs of Sam's Fresh Salsa Verde
- 1 tsp of taco seasoning
- ¼ tsp cayenne pepper (optional)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400F
- In a blender add water, cashews, salsa verde, and taco seasoning. Blend on high until smooth. Set aside.
- Add queso cashew cheese, pasta, pepper, onion, salt, pepper, broth, and milk to a 9X13 baking dish and stir the ingredients until well combined
- Cover with aluminum foil (IMPORTANT that it's as air tight as possible to cook pasta correctly)
- Place in oven to bake for 30 minutes
- After 30 minutes, remove foil and test pasta for doneness. If it is still too tough, cover and bake for another 10 minutes. Once pasta is done, stir in the salsa and top with garnish.
- Eat!
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 40 minutes
- Category: Dinner
- Method: Oven
- Cuisine: Tex-Mex
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