Red Pepper Pasta / Vegan Pasta

Vegan Pasta

Ingredients

US Customary - Metric

• 12 ounces dry pasta*
• 1/2 small eggplant (cubed)
• 2 cups cremini or button mushrooms (sliced)
• 3 cloves garlic (minced and divided)
• 1 1/2 cups vegan marinara sauce
• 2 cup water
• 2 tsp sea salt (plus more for eggplant)
• 1 tsp ground black pepper
• 2-3 Tbsp olive oil
• Fresh parsley or basil (optional // for finishing)

Instructions

1. Rinse and dice eggplant into small, bite-sized cubes. Place in a colander in the sink and sprinkle generously with salt to draw out some of the moisture. Wait 20-30 minutes. Then rinse and pat thoroughly dry with a towel. Set aside. If you’re short on time, skip the eggplant and double the mushrooms.
2. Heat a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add olive oil, the eggplant and 1/3 of the minced garlic (1 clove as original recipe is written // adjust if altering batch size). Sprinkle with 1/2 tsp sea salt (as original recipe is written // adjust if altering batch size). Sauté for 3-5 minutes or until a golden brown color is achieved, then add the mushrooms and cook for 2 minutes more or until all of the veggies have color. Set aside and cover – you will top the pasta with it.
3. To the same saucepan, add the pasta, water, marinara sauce, the remaining cloves of garlic. Start with 1.5 tsp sea salt and 1 tsp black pepper (you will likely add more later depending on the saltiness of your marinara/your personal taste // amount as original recipe is written // adjust if altering batch size).
4. Bring mixture to a boil, then cover and reduce heat to a simmer until the pasta is cooked to al dente – will vary depending on kind of pasta – but typically an average of 10 minutes, stirring once or twice so it doesn’t stick to the pan.
5. Once cooked, stir and taste to adjust seasonings. I added more salt and fresh herbs at this point.
6. Remove from heat and top with eggplant-mushroom mixture and more fresh parsley or basil. Serve immediately. Serves 3-4 (as original recipe is written).

Notes

*For the pasta, I used 3/4 of a 16-ounce bag of orecchiette, but I would recommend a spaghetti or penne, as it’s not as likely to clump together.
*Use gluten-free pasta to keep gluten-free.
*Adapted from Martha Stewart.
*Inspired by Vegan Miam.
*Nutrition information is a rough estimate.

Original Recipe

Red Pepper Pasta

PASTA

• 2 (~119 g each) red bell peppers 
• 2-3 Tbsp olive oil
• 2 medium shallots* (finely chopped)
• 4 cloves garlic* (finely chopped)
• Sea salt and ground black pepper (to taste)
• 1 1/2 cups Unsweetened Original Almond Breeze Almond Milk
• 2 Tbsp nutritional yeast
• 1 1/2 Tbsp cornstarch or arrowroot powder (or other thickener of choice)
• 1 pinch red pepper flake (optional // for heat)
• 12 ounces gluten-free linguini or spaghetti noodles (or other noodle of choice)

FOR SERVING optional

• Vegan parmesan cheese
• Finely chopped fresh parsley or basil

Instructions

1. Heat oven to 500 degrees F (260 C) and roast red peppers on a baking sheet until charred - about 25-30 minutes. Cover in foil for 10 minutes to steam, then remove (peel away) charred skin, seeds and stems. Set aside.
2. Cook pasta according to package instructions; drain, toss in a touch of olive oil, cover with a towel and set aside.
3. While the red peppers are roasting, bring a large skillet over medium heat and sauté onion and garlic in olive oil until golden brown and soft - about 4-5 minutes. Season with a generous pinch of salt and pepper and stir. Remove from heat and set aside.
4. Transfer sautéed shallot and garlic to blender with roasted peppers, almond milk, red pepper flake, nutritional yeast and cornstarch. Season with desired amount of salt, pepper, and red pepper flake.
5. Blend until creamy and smooth, taste and adjust seasonings as needed, adding more salt and pepper or nutritional yeast for flavor. You want the flavor to be pretty robust and strong since the noodles don't have much flavor - so be generous with your seasonings.
6. Once blended, place sauce back in the skillet over medium heat to thicken. Once it reaches a simmer, reduce heat to low and continue simmering.
7. Once sauce is thickened to desired consistency (see photo), add noodles. However, before tossing add a touch more olive oil, salt and pepper to the un-tossed noodles for added flavor. Then, toss to coat.
8. Serve with (generous amounts of) vegan parmesan, red pepper flake, and fresh chopped parsley or basil.

Notes

*2 shallots yield ~1/4 cup finely chopped.
*4 garlic cloves yield ~2 Tbsp minced.

Original Recipe