Creamy Baked Red Pepper Penne Pasta

No ratings yet

Fool your friends with this delicious creamy baked red pepper penne pasta - they'll never guess it is dairy free! The secret is the pureed cashew cream.

Prep Time20

Cook Time25

Total Time45

Course: Entree, Main Dish

Cuisine: Vegetarian

Servings: servings

Calories: 348kcal

Author: Deborah Murphy

Ingredients

For the Pasta:

1/2 lbs penne pasta
2 cups pasta sauce
16 oz jar roasted red peppers, drained
1 cup raw cashews, soaked overnight
1 cup vegetable broth
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 cloves garlic, minced minced
2 tablespoons nutritional yeast
1/8 teaspoon sea salt
3 cups fresh baby spinach leaves

For the Topping:

1/4 cup breadcrumbs
1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
1/8 teaspoon black pepper

Instructions

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
Bring 2 quarts of water to a rapid boil. Add the penne pasta to the boiling water and stir gently. Return to a rapid boil and cook, uncovered, for 8 minutes. (You want to undercook it a couple minutes since you bake it as well.) Drain the pasta and set aside.
While the pasta boils, add the pasta sauce and red peppers to a food processor and puree until smooth.
Rinse the food processor (or use a single serving blender cup) to puree with cashews and broth together until smooth.
In a skillet, add the olive oil and garlic. Cook for 1 minute until garlic is fragrant. Stir in the pureed cashews, nutritional yeast, and salt.
Combine the pasta, cashew cream, tomato sauce, and spinach leaves together in a large bowl (or the same pot used to cook the pasta) and transfer to an 8"x8" baking dish.
In a small bowl, mix the breadcrumbs, Italian seasoning, and black pepper. Sprinkle evenly over the pasta and bake for 25-30 minutes or until breadcrumbs have started to brown and sauce is bubbling.

Nutrition