These are 10 vegan pasta recipes that start with one decision: using a gourmet sauce that’s already built the flavor for you. Marry Me Marinara and Marry Me Alla Vodka are the foundation. The recipes take that foundation and do something worthwhile with it — from the 20-minute classic to baked pasta that holds the table for an hour. All vegan. All gluten-free. All ready in the time it says.
For the complete guide to vegan pasta sauce types, what to look for on a label, and a single foundational recipe — see our vegan pasta sauce hub.
For the vegan vodka sauce story and why coconut cream works better than dairy — see our vegan vodka sauce guide.
Jump to a Recipe
Before the recipes: the right pasta shape makes a material difference to how each dish works. Ridged tubes catch thick sauces. Long strands carry lighter ones. Every recipe below specifies the shape and why. Pair any of these with a certified gluten-free pasta for a fully GF meal — both Marry Me sauces are naturally gluten-free. More on that at our gluten-free and vegan pasta sauce guide.
Recipe 1 — Classic Vegan Marinara Pasta
PREP
5 min
COOK
15 min
TOTAL
20 min
SERVES
2
SAUCE
Marinara
The one every other recipe in this list is built on. Get this right and everything else follows. The technique that matters: toss pasta directly in the pan with the sauce and a splash of pasta water, never drain and pour. That’s what makes the sauce cling.
Ingredients
- 1 jar Marry Me Marinara (24oz)
- 300g rigatoni
- 2 tbsp cold-pressed extra virgin olive oil
- 2 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
- Fresh basil, vegan Parmesan, sea salt
Method
Cook rigatoni in well-salted water, 1 minute less than packet. Reserve a cup of pasta water. While pasta cooks, warm olive oil over medium-low, add garlic, cook 90 seconds. Add the full jar of Marry Me Marinara, warm 3 minutes on low. Add drained pasta directly to the pan. Toss, adding pasta water a splash at a time until the sauce coats every piece. Finish with torn fresh basil and vegan Parmesan.
Recipe 2 — Vegan Vodka Pasta (Penne alla Vodka)
PREP
5 min
COOK
15 min
TOTAL
20 min
SERVES
2
SAUCE
Alla Vodka
Marry Me Alla Vodka uses full coconut cream in place of dairy — meaning this is penne alla vodka as it should taste, without any dairy. The sauce is already built: rich, blush-pink, with Calabrian heat and real vodka. You just need the pasta and the pan. For the full story of how coconut cream outperforms dairy in this application, see our vegan vodka sauce guide.
Ingredients
- 1 jar Marry Me Alla Vodka (24oz)
- 300g penne or rigatoni
- Fresh basil, vegan Parmesan, sea salt
Method
Cook pasta in well-salted water. Reserve pasta water. Warm Marry Me Alla Vodka in a wide pan over low heat — do not boil the coconut cream. Add drained pasta, toss with pasta water until sauce coats evenly. Finish with fresh basil and vegan Parmesan. Serve immediately — the coconut cream sauce thickens as it cools.
Recipe 3 — Vegan Shakshuka
PREP
5 min
COOK
15 min
TOTAL
20 min
SERVES
2
SAUCE
Marinara
Technically not pasta — but it belongs in this list because it’s the fastest, most impressive thing you can make with a jar of Marry Me Marinara. Silken tofu set into the sauce gives you the protein and visual effect of traditional shakshuka eggs without any dairy. Serve with crusty bread or GF toast. Dinner in 20 minutes, zero effort, looks restaurant-quality.
Ingredients
- 1 jar Marry Me Marinara (24oz)
- 200g silken tofu, cut into rounds
- ½ tsp smoked paprika, pinch of chilli flakes
- Fresh parsley or coriander, sea salt
- Crusty bread or GF toast to serve
Method
Warm Marry Me Marinara in a wide, lidded pan over medium heat. Add paprika and chilli flakes, stir through. Create 4–6 small wells in the sauce. Set silken tofu rounds into each well. Season the tofu with salt, cover the pan, and cook on low for 8–10 minutes until tofu is warmed through and set. Scatter fresh parsley or coriander over the top. Serve directly from the pan with bread for scooping.
Recipe 4 — Vegan Baked Ziti
PREP
15 min
COOK
30 min
TOTAL
45 min
SERVES
4
SAUCE
Alla Vodka
Marry Me Alla Vodka’s coconut cream base makes this baked ziti richer and creamier than the dairy version. The cashew ricotta adds texture and protein. This is the recipe for when you want something that feels substantial and celebratory — a vegan pasta bake that doesn’t taste like a compromise.
Ingredients
- 1 jar Marry Me Alla Vodka (24oz)
- 400g ziti or rigatoni
- 200g cashew ricotta (or firm tofu blended with lemon and nutritional yeast)
- 100g vegan mozzarella, torn
- Fresh basil, sea salt, black pepper
Method
Preheat oven to 375°F / 190°C. Cook pasta 3 minutes less than packet instructions — it will finish in the oven. Drain. Toss pasta with three-quarters of the Marry Me Alla Vodka and half the cashew ricotta. Transfer to a baking dish. Dot remaining ricotta over the top, pour remaining sauce over, scatter vegan mozzarella. Bake covered with foil for 20 minutes, then uncovered for 10 minutes until bubbling and golden. Rest 5 minutes before serving.
Recipe 5 — Vegan Pasta Primavera
PREP
10 min
COOK
25 min
TOTAL
35 min
SERVES
2–3
SAUCE
Marinara
The vegetables roast while the pasta cooks — so the timing works out at around 35 minutes total with minimal hands-on time. Use whatever is seasonal: courgette, peppers, cherry tomatoes, asparagus, broccoli. The Marry Me Marinara base brings everything together without overwhelming the vegetables’ own flavour.
Ingredients
- 1 jar Marry Me Marinara (24oz)
- 300g penne or farfalle
- 2 courgettes, 1 red pepper, 1 cup cherry tomatoes — all chopped
- 3 tbsp cold-pressed olive oil
- Fresh basil, sea salt, black pepper
Method
Preheat oven to 400°F / 200°C. Toss chopped vegetables with olive oil, salt and pepper. Roast on a tray for 20–25 minutes until caramelised at the edges. Cook pasta while vegetables roast. Warm Marry Me Marinara in a wide pan. Add drained pasta and roasted vegetables, toss everything together with a splash of pasta water. Finish with fresh basil.
Recipe 6 — One-Pot Vegan Orzo
PREP
3 min
COOK
17 min
TOTAL
20 min
SERVES
2
SAUCE
Marinara
One pan, no draining, 20 minutes. The orzo cooks directly in the sauce and vegetable stock, absorbing both as it softens — producing a risotto-style texture without any of the technique. Spinach goes in at the end, wilts in 60 seconds, adds colour and nutrition. This is the weeknight recipe that ends the question of what to have for dinner.
Ingredients
- ½ jar Marry Me Marinara (about 1½ cups)
- 200g dry orzo
- 500ml vegetable stock
- 2 large handfuls fresh spinach
- Zest of half a lemon, sea salt, black pepper
- Drizzle of cold-pressed olive oil to finish
Method
Add Marry Me Marinara, vegetable stock, and dry orzo to a wide pan. Stir to combine. Bring to a gentle simmer over medium heat, then reduce to low. Cook uncovered for 12–15 minutes, stirring every few minutes, until orzo is tender and most liquid is absorbed. Add spinach, stir through, cover for 60 seconds until wilted. Season, add lemon zest, drizzle with olive oil. Serve immediately — orzo continues to absorb liquid as it sits.
Recipe 7 — Vegan Stuffed Shells
PREP
20 min
COOK
25 min
TOTAL
45 min
SERVES
3–4
SAUCE
Marinara
The filling is firm tofu blended with lemon, nutritional yeast, garlic, and fresh herbs — it has the texture and function of ricotta without any dairy. The shells hold it together perfectly. A jar of Marry Me Marinara covers the bottom and top of the dish. This is the recipe that impresses guests and requires less skill than it looks.
Ingredients
- 1 jar Marry Me Marinara (24oz)
- 20 jumbo pasta shells (conchiglioni)
- 400g firm tofu, drained and pressed
- 3 tbsp nutritional yeast, juice of half a lemon
- 1 clove garlic, 1 tbsp fresh basil, salt and pepper
Method
Preheat oven to 375°F / 190°C. Cook shells 2 minutes less than packet, drain carefully. Blend tofu, nutritional yeast, lemon juice, garlic, basil, salt and pepper until smooth ricotta-like consistency. Spread half the Marry Me Marinara in the base of a baking dish. Fill each shell with a generous spoonful of tofu filling, place open-side up in the dish. Pour remaining sauce over, cover with foil. Bake 20 minutes, remove foil and bake a further 5 minutes. Finish with fresh basil.
Recipe 8 — Vegan Puttanesca
PREP
5 min
COOK
15 min
TOTAL
20 min
SERVES
2
SAUCE
Marinara
The authentic Neapolitan puttanesca contains no anchovy — it’s kalamata olives, capers, and tomato sauce. Entirely plant-based, deeply flavoured, and done in 20 minutes. Marry Me Marinara is the ideal base: clean tomato flavour that doesn’t fight the brine of the olives and capers. Spaghetti only — the strands carry the sauce and the small pieces of olive cling naturally to the long shape.
Ingredients
- 1 jar Marry Me Marinara (24oz)
- 300g spaghetti
- ½ cup kalamata olives, pitted and roughly torn
- 3 tbsp capers, drained
- Pinch of red pepper flakes, fresh parsley
Method
Cook spaghetti in well-salted water. While pasta cooks, warm Marry Me Marinara in a wide pan over medium-low. Add olives, capers, and red pepper flakes. Simmer gently for 5 minutes — the brine from the olives and capers seasons the sauce naturally, so don’t add extra salt until you’ve tasted at the end. Add drained pasta to the pan, toss with pasta water. Scatter fresh parsley over the top and serve immediately.
Recipe 9 — Vegan Pasta al Forno
PREP
10 min
COOK
35 min
TOTAL
45 min
SERVES
4
SAUCE
Alla Vodka
Pasta al forno — pasta in the oven — is the Italian answer to every occasion that needs a dish that holds the table. Marry Me Alla Vodka’s coconut cream base produces the kind of bubbling, golden baked pasta that traditionally required dairy. The vegan mozzarella on top caramelises slightly at the edges — that’s the moment it’s ready.
Ingredients
- 1 jar Marry Me Alla Vodka (24oz)
- 400g rigatoni or penne
- 150g vegan mozzarella, torn
- 1 cup sautéed mushrooms or spinach (optional)
- Fresh basil, sea salt, nutritional yeast
Method
Preheat oven to 375°F / 190°C. Cook pasta 3 minutes less than packet. Drain, toss immediately with Marry Me Alla Vodka and any vegetables. Transfer to a large baking dish. Scatter vegan mozzarella over the top with a light dusting of nutritional yeast. Cover with foil and bake 20 minutes. Remove foil, increase heat to 400°F / 200°C, and bake a further 10–15 minutes until the top is golden and the sauce is bubbling at the edges. Rest 5 minutes, then serve with fresh basil.
Recipe 10 — Vegan Spaghetti with Garlic, Olive Oil and Marinara
PREP
3 min
COOK
12 min
TOTAL
15 min
SERVES
2
SAUCE
Marinara
The fastest recipe in this list. Aglio e olio — garlic and olive oil — is the base. Marry Me Marinara is stirred through at the end: just enough to add tomato depth and colour without turning it into a heavy pasta. The result is somewhere between aglio e olio and a very light marinara — silky, garlicky, with enough tomato to feel complete. Fifteen minutes, one pan, minimal washing up.
Ingredients
- ½ cup Marry Me Marinara (about 4 tbsp)
- 300g spaghetti
- 4 tbsp cold-pressed extra virgin olive oil
- 4 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
- Pinch of red pepper flakes
- Fresh parsley, sea salt, black pepper
Method
Cook spaghetti in generously salted water. While it cooks, warm olive oil in a wide pan over medium-low. Add sliced garlic and red pepper flakes, cook 2 minutes until garlic is golden at the edges — watch it carefully, golden not brown. Add Marry Me Marinara, stir to combine with the garlic oil, warm through for 60 seconds. Add drained pasta directly to the pan with a generous cup of pasta water. Toss vigorously — the starchy water emulsifies the oil into a silky coating. Add fresh parsley, taste for salt, serve immediately.
10 Recipes. Two Sauces. All Vegan.
Marry Me Marinara and Marry Me Alla Vodka — both 100% vegan, gluten-free, no added sugar, no preservatives. Small-batch crafted in Wilmington, NC.
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Tips That Apply to Every Recipe on This List
Salt the pasta water properly. It should taste like mild seawater. Under-salted pasta water produces bland pasta that no sauce can fix. This is the single most impactful thing most home cooks can improve.
Always finish pasta in the sauce pan, not the bowl. Transferring cooked pasta into a bowl and pouring sauce over it is the reason home pasta rarely reaches restaurant quality. Tossing pasta in the sauce pan — with pasta water — creates a unified dish where the sauce coats every surface.
Don’t boil the sauce. Marry Me Marinara and Alla Vodka are already cooked — they need warming, not cooking. High heat damages the flavour compounds and can cause the Alla Vodka’s coconut cream to separate. Low and gentle.
Vegan Parmesan matters. Not all vegan Parmesan is equal. Cashew-based versions with nutritional yeast are the closest to the real thing. Sprinkle generously — it’s not just decoration. For a romantic pasta dinner for two, it’s the detail that elevates the whole plate. For the nutritional science behind what garlic, olive oil and basil are doing in every one of these dishes, see our garlic, basil and olive oil nutrition guide.
For the broader vegan sauce guide including types, label reading, and buying advice, see the vegan pasta sauce hub. For how these sauces work beyond pasta, see using gourmet pasta sauce beyond spaghetti.
Vegan Pasta Sauce Hub — More Guides
- Vegan Pasta Sauce: The Complete Guide
- Vegan Marinara Sauce: Recipe and Best Jarred Options
- Vegan Vodka Sauce: How Coconut Cream Changes Everything
- Plant-Based Pasta Sauce: What It Really Means
- Gluten-Free and Vegan Gourmet Pasta Sauce
- Best Pasta Shapes for Gourmet Sauce
- Using Gourmet Pasta Sauce Beyond Spaghetti
- Nutritional Benefits of Garlic, Basil, and Olive Oil
- Is Marinara Sauce Healthy?
- All-Natural Gourmet Pasta Sauce Benefits
- Romantic Pasta Recipes for Two
- Romantic Dinner Ideas for Two at Home
- Complete Guide to Gourmet Pasta Sauce
- Shop All Marry Me Gourmet Sauces
