While meaty ragùs make up a large part of pasta dishes in Italy, there are a wealth of sauces made with vegetarian ingredients that are every bit as delicious. No matter where you are, be it in the sunny south or the cooler north, the cucina povera cooking that formed the backbone of so many traditional Italian dishes means humble vegetables are paired with a whole host of pasta shapes to create absolutely beautiful plates of food.

Our collection of vegetarian pasta recipes proves just how many dishes those following a vegetarian diet have to choose from. Tomato sauce can be transformed into all sorts of authentic and traditional pasta dishes – add aubergines to create Sicily's beloved Pasta alla Norma, chilli for Penne all'arrabbiata or plenty of stringy mozzarella for Pasta alla sorrentina. In Calabria the deceptively simple Lagane e cicciari (pasta with chickpeas) is far more delicious than you might expect, while in Piedmont they melt butter and infuse it with sage to drizzle over Tajarin pasta.

Remember that famous Italian cheeses such as Parmesan and Grana Padano (as well as the majority of pecorino) are made with animal rennet, so swap them out for a similar hard cheese made with vegetable rennet if you're following a strict vegetarian diet.