This delicious pasta has a creamy, elegant sauce that is quick, easy and lower in fat than a dairy or nut based cream sauce.
Hearts of palm get a quick purée in a blender with fresh thyme, garlic, lemon juice and a bit of olive oil. Adding in some of the water used to cook the pasta makes the sauce glossy and thick.
While the pasta boils, chop a ripe tomato. Add fresh baby spinach to the pasta pot a few minutes before the noodles are ready. Toss it all in a bowl with the sauce and you have a simple, sophisticated dish in just a few minutes.
It’s delicious on its own…but if you can, add the walnut topping. The salty, cheesy flavor really enhances the sauce and rounds out the dish.
You could add any vegetables you like, either boiled with the pasta or quickly steamed or sautéed.
Summer Pasta with Vegan Cream Sauce
Yield:
4 servings
Prep Time:
10 minutes
Cook Time:
15 minutes
Total Time:
25 minutes
Want a delicious, elegant vegan pasta dish? Hearts of Palm and fresh thyme sing in this delightfully creamy sauce that comes together in minutes.
The walnut topping is absolutely divine with this sauce, so I highly recommend using it. If you want to keep the dish lighter, you can omit the topping (which will reduce the fat by about half).
Ingredients
- 3 cups dried Farfalle or other pasta of choice
- 2 cups baby spinach, roughly chopped
- 2 large, ripe tomatoes, roughly chopped
Cream Sauce
- 1 can Hearts of Palm, drained (reserve 1/3 cup of the liquid from the can), roughly chopped
- 1/3 cup of the water used to boil the pasta
- 2 Tablespoons olive oil
- 1 teaspoon lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves, chopped; plus extra thyme leaves for garnish
- 1/2 teaspoon minced fresh garlic
- 1/4 teaspoon sea salt
- pinch cayenne
- freshly ground black pepper
Walnut Topping
- 1/2 cup raw walnuts
- 1/8 cup nutritional yeast
- 1/4-1 teaspoon sea salt (depending on strength of salt and personal preference)
Instructions
- Combine the walnut topping ingredients in the blender and process until you have a crumb-like consistency. Start with 1/4 teaspoon of sea salt, then taste the mixture and increase the salt to your liking. I use fine Himalayan sea salt, which tends to be saltier. Trasnfer the mixture to a small bowl.
- Bring a large pot of heavily salted water to a boil.
- Add the pasta and cook according to package directions. During the last couple minutes of cooking, add the spinach to the pot. Do not drain the pasta and spinach using a colander, instead use tongs or a slotted spoon to transfer them to a large bowl.
- While the pasta boils, place the sauce ingredients, including the 1/3 cup of liquid from the Hearts of Palm can, in the blender (don't blend just yet) and chop the tomato.
- Once the pasta is done, transfer 1/3 cup of the cooking water to the blender with the other sauce ingredients. Puree until smooth.
- Add the chopped tomato to the large bowl with the pasta and spinach. Pour about 3/4 of the sauce over the pasta and toss to combine.
- Divide between 4 plates, or keep it all in one big serving dish. Drizzle the remaining sauce evenly over the pasta, sprinkle with the walnut topping and fresh thyme leaves (optional). Pass the extra walnut topping at the table.
Notes
You can use any vegetables you like with this - lightly boil, steam or sautee them before adding to the pasta. Zucchini and/or asparagus would be especially tasty.
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 4 Serving Size: 1 cupAmount Per Serving: Calories: 426Total Fat: 17gSaturated Fat: 2gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 14gCholesterol: 0mgSodium: 718mgCarbohydrates: 56gFiber: 6gSugar: 4gProtein: 14g
Nutrition information is believed to be accurate but is not guaranteed.
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