A wonderfully creamy, rich tomato sauce made with cashews perfect paired with pasta and fresh basil for a light but deeply satisfying meal.
Cashews are one of my favourite ingredients to experiment with in vegan cooking.
What I once thought was just an unassuming, mild-tasting nut actually turns out to be one of the MOST versatile ingredients you can get when it comes to creating creamy vegan dishes.
From pasta sauces to cheesecake, cashew is almost always at the root of the recipe. This creamy tomato sauce is no different – rather than using cream, I simply blended cashews into the sauce to it beautifully thick – no cornstarch required.
Other pasta recipes you might like include this cheesy orzo mac and cheese, hearty lentil bolognese, or this beautifully creamy butternut squash and white bean pasta.
I served this recipe with rigatoni pasta, which is one of my favourite pasta shapes – although this sauce would also be great with spaghetti or linguine.
In the recipe photos, the sauce is served plain with pasta and fresh basil which makes an amazing, light meal. However, I’ve also made this recipe with pan-fried sliced veggie sauces and mushrooms, and that really bulks this meal out which is also a great option.
How to make creamy tomato cashew sauce
This sauce is really easy to make. All you need, equipment-wise, is a blender and a saucepan. I only have a NutriBullet and use it for all my blending needs, and it works great.
You’ll start by blending cashews, tinned tomatoes, nutritional yeast (optional), and a little plant-based milk. Then, saute some garlic in your pan and add paprika and tomato paste, then stir in the tomato cashew mix.
Season to your liking, cook your pasta, and serve with fresh basil. Simple! And so delicious.
I hope you enjoy this recipe! Another pasta sauce that uses cashews to make it creamy that you might like is this roasted butternut squash pasta sauce.
Other pasta recipes you should check out:
Red lentil bolognese | Jackfruit bolognese |
Vegan meatballs with tomato sauce | Red pepper pasta sauce
Creamy Tomato Cashew Pasta
A wonderfully creamy vegan tomato sauce made with blended cashews. This light pasta sauce is perfect when paired with fresh basil for a delicious dinner.
Ingredients
- 40g cashews
- 1 400g tin of chopped tomatoes or passata
- 50ml almond milk
- 1 tsp minced garlic
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 2 tbsp nutritional yeast
- 1 tbsp tamari sauce
- salt and pepper
- 1 tsp paprika
- 300g rigatoni pasta
- handful of fresh basil leaves
Instructions
- Place the cashews, tomatoes, nutritional yeast and almond milk in a blender and blend until smooth.
- Add your olive oil to a sauce pan, and sautee your garlic for 1 - 2 minutes until fragrant.
- Add the tomato sauce to the pan along with your tamari and seasoning. Bring to the boil and then simmer immediately on a low heat for 5 - 10 minutes. Taste and adjust your seasoning as required.
- Cook your pasta according to the packet instructions, drain, and then stir into the sauce.
- Sprinkle over your basil and serve!
Notes
For a more filling meal, this pasta dish is amazing with chopped veggie sausages or crispy tempeh pieces!
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 3 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 398Total Fat: 13gSaturated Fat: 2gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 10gCholesterol: 0mgSodium: 533mgCarbohydrates: 57gFiber: 7gSugar: 6gProtein: 15g
THESE 15 DELICIOUS MEAL PREP PASTA RECIPES ARE BUDGET-FRIENDLY - Health with Style
Monday 11th of October 2021
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