Vegan Pasta Recipes: Creamy Pasta Pomodoro
Serves 4
This creamy pasta pomodoro is one of our favorite vegan pasta recipes!
Ingredients
Creamy Tomato Sauce
- 1/2 recipe Marinara Sauce
- ¼ cup raw cashews
- ½ tablespoon tomato paste
- ¼ cup water
- ¼ cup pasta water
- ¼ to ½ teaspoon sea salt
For the Pasta
- 10 ounces rigatoni
- Extra-virgin olive oil, for drizzling
- 2 medium zucchini, sliced into thin half moons
- 2 tablespoons fresh thyme leaves
- 2 (14-ounce) cans cherry tomatoes, drained (or 1 pint fresh cherry tomatoes)
- 6 cups spinach or mix of spinach & arugula
- ¼ cup chopped parsley or sliced basil
- Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
Instructions
- Make the sauce: Add the marinara to a blender with the cashews, tomato paste, salt, and ¼ cup of water. Blend until smooth. Set aside until ready to use. Before serving, stir in ¼ cup hot pasta cooking water to loosen it up so that it’ll nicely coat the pasta.
- Cook the pasta in a large pot of salted boiling water according to package directions or until al dente.
- While the pasta cooks, heat generous drizzles of olive oil in a nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add the zucchini, thyme, and generous pinches of salt and pepper. Sautee, stirring occasionally, until lightly browned, about 3 minutes. Add the tomatoes, reduce the heat to low, and cook for 2 to 3 more minutes or until heated through (if using fresh cherry tomatoes, cook until the tomatoes are soft). Add the spinach and gently toss until wilted. Season to taste with more salt and pepper.
- Scoop the pasta into individual bowls, add scoops of the creamy sauce, and toss to coat. Distribute the vegetables among the bowls and top with parsley and or basil. Season to taste and serve.