This light and healthy Vegan Pasta with Creamy Tomato Sauce is super easy to prepare, takes less than 30 minutes and tastes like heaven on a plate!
Hot summer weather always calls for light meals, and what's better than a yummy plate of pasta with a not-so-heavy sauce? I also thought that this would be the perfect time to do this as tomatoes are very much in season at the moment! This dish mostly uses fresh ingredients, which is great, right?
About Vegan Pasta with Creamy Tomato Sauce
What makes this sauce so creamy? The answer is 2 special ingredients; cashew nuts and pasta water. I'm a big fan of using reserved pasta water in sauces. It's one of the secret ingredients that restaurants use to perfect their pasta dishes. I actually have a recipe which uses pasta water as the main ingredient and base for the sauce [Fettuccine with Goat Cheese, Kale & Pistachio]. Cashew nuts are one of the great ingredients which are used to make creamy vegan dishes. It would taste even better if you soak cashew nuts overnight before using them, but its not mandatory to do so.
Sauté vegetables and cashews Fresh basil and dried herbs Blend for a creamy sauce
And so I'm really satisfied with how this pasta dish turns out. I'm a huge fan of pasta, and I love experimenting on new sauces with different ingredients and flavors. This is a really simple dish which takes less than 20 minutes to prepare. It's also very flavorful and perfect for hot summer days when you'd want something less heavy for lunch or dinner. It's made with fresh ingredients which are in season, making the dish more nutritious. Of course, you may use canned tomatoes for this recipe, but I'd love to cut down on the preserves whenever it's possible to do so!
Vegan Pasta with Creamy Tomato Sauce
Ingredients
- 200 g spaghetti *
- 400 g tomatoes **
- 1 onion medium sized, sliced
- 2 cloves garlic whole
- 20 g cashew nuts ***
- 5 fresh basil leaves
- 1 tbsp Italian seasoning
- 1 tbsp tomato paste
- ½ tsp crushed chilli flakes
- ½ tsp salt
- 55 mL olive oil
- 1 tbsp reserved pasta water
Instructions
- Boil pasta according to cooking instructions until al dente. Reserve at least 1 tbsp of pasta water.
- In a large skillet, sauté onions, garlic, cashews and tomatoes until softened (around 5 minutes) in 2 tbsp olive oil. Cool completely when done.
- Place vegetables and cashews in a blender/ food processor along with 1 tbsp pasta water, olive oil, tomato paste, basil leaves, crushed chillies, salt, and Italian seasoning. Pulse until a creamy sauce is formed.
- Pour sauce into skillet and mix with drained pasta. Serve with fresh basil leaves as desired.
Notes
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