Description
This delicious high-protein pasta bake is made with Chickpea pasta and delicious vegan creamed spinach. A protein-rich gluten-free pasta bake dinner that is easy to make.
Ingredients
Units
Scale
- 1 1/4 cup raw cashews
- 1 1/4 cup boiling water
- 8oz Chickpea Fussili
- 1 tbsp nutritional yeast
- 1 1/4 tsp salt, or to taste
- 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 2 lbs frozen chopped spinach, thawed
- 1 cup unsweetened non-dairy milk ( not vanilla flavored)
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
- 1 1/2 tsp garlic powder
- A pinch of red pepper flakes or Aleppo Pepper (optional)
- 1 1/2 cups cup vegan shredded cheese (or dairy cheese, if you are not vegan)
Instructions
- Squeeze as much water as you can out of the thawed spinach ( See Note 1, if you forgot to thaw)
- Soak the cashews in the boiling water for about 20 minutes
- In the meantime, prepare the pasta following the package directions. Drain well, you can leave it in the colander until ready to use.
- When the cashews are ready, transfer them to a high-power blender or smoothie blender with 1/2 cup of water, the nutritional yeast, and 1 teaspoon of salt (more or less to taste). Blend until smooth and creamy, process for at least a minute for the cashews to become really creamy. Set aside
- Heat the olive oil in a large non-stick skillet. Add the spinach and cook over medium heat for about 10 minutes, stirring often, making sure any remaining water evaporates. Add the non-dairy milk and cashew cream, 1/4 teaspoon of the remaining salt, pepper, and garlic powder. Continue cooking for another minute or two, stirring constantly. Taste it and adjust the seasoning to your liking.
- Preheat the oven to 350F. Coat a 7x11-inch baking dish with cooking spray
- Add the pasta to the spinach mixture to the pasta and mix well.
- Transfer it to the baking dish, sprinkle the cheese on top, and bake for 20 minutes, or until the cheese has melted.
Notes
- If you forgot to thaw the spinach ahead of time place it in the microwave for a minute or two until thawed. Squeeze as much water as possible out of the spinach.
- If you don't want to use cashews or you are allergic to nuts, you may use coconut milk (if vegan) or heavy cream if not vegan.
- Making ahead tips: Try taking five minutes in the morning to measure your cashews and soak them in a large bowl of water and take the spinach out of the freezer to defrost. (We suggest that you leave the spinach in another large bowl; as it defrosts, its dark green juice somehow finds its way all over the kitchen!) If you have an additional 10 minutes, you can cook the chickpea pasta, drain it, then mix it with a scant amount of olive oil to prevent the noodles from sticking together.
This post was originally published on March 16, 2018
- Prep Time: 10
- Soaking Time: 20
- Cook Time: 35 minutes
- Category: Dinner
- Method: Baked
- Cuisine: American
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 heaping cup
- Calories: 360
- Sugar: 3
- Sodium: 537
- Fat: 17.8
- Saturated Fat: 3
- Unsaturated Fat: 12
- Trans Fat: 0
- Carbohydrates: 32.2
- Fiber: 8.3
- Protein: 18
- Cholesterol: 0