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Penne with Spinach Cream Sauce

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Any pasta will work with this sauce. You can also use kale but it will need to blanched by immersing it in the boiling pasta water for 5 minutes. Kale should be bright green and tender but not mushy or overcooked.

  • Author: Mary Leir
  • Prep Time: 10
  • Cook Time: 20
  • Total Time: 30 minutes
  • Yield: 8 servings 1x

Ingredients

Scale
  • 1 pound penne
  • Extra-virgin olive oil
  • 1 shallot, minced
  • 1 small onion, diced
  • 1/2 cup roasted unsalted cashew pieces
  • 1/2 cup pine nuts, toasted
  • 3 cloves garlic, minced
  • Kosher salt and fresh ground black pepper
  • 1/2 cup dry white wine
  • 3 tablespoons nutritional yeast
  • 2 cups unsweetened soy or almond milk
  • 4 tablespoons vegan butter
  • 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
  • 1 bunch spinach, cleaned well, stems removed, roughly chopped

Instructions

  1. Bring a large pot of salted water to boil. Add the penne and cook according to package instructions. Reserve 1 cup of cooking water when draining the pasta.
  2. Heat olive oil in a large, heavy bottom pan over medium heat. Add the onion, shallots, cashew pieces and pine nuts. Season with salt and pepper. Sauté until golden, 5 to 8 minutes. Add the garlic and sauté for 1 minute more.
  3. Add the white wine and nutritional yeast. Stir until combined. Cook for a few minutes to reduce the wine by half.
  4. Stir in the soy or almond milk and vegan butter. When vegan butter is melted, turn off heat and add lemon juice. Stir until combined.
  5. Working in batches, transfer sauce to blender, adding a handful of spinach each time. Blend until completely smooth. Use a little pasta water to thin, if needed.
  6. Pour into sauce pan as you work to keep warm. Season with salt and pepper.
  7. Toss sauce with pasta. Sprinkle red hot pepper and serve.

Notes

This sauce does not keep. Spinach darkens and changes flavor after it cools. If not using all of the sauce at once, set aside 1/2 of the base and the spinach. Store separately. When ready to use the remainder of the sauce, reheat and blend with fresh spinach.

Find it online: http://shiftycrafty.com/penne-spinach-cream-sauce/