“Doesn’t this look good, Ashley? I want to eat it so badly,” she said as she showed me the photo of the creamy mushroom vegan pasta on her phone.
“It looks SO good. SO delicious. I’ll make it for you!”
“No, how will you do that? What will you use to make it vegan?”
“Magic.”
Well, not really.
My plan was to use cashew butter and almond milk for the vegan creaminess, with some nutritional yeast for a little extra bang for my buck.
However, the store was out of stock for cashew butter and I forgot the NOOCH. Thus, the recipe came together using cashew milk and sesame tahini instead, with plenty of fresh herbs and spinach.
It turned out beautifully and I’m grateful for the happy accident of ingredient unavailability!
Vegan Creamy Mushroom Pasta
Vegan Creamy Mushroom Pasta
1 lb. dry pasta
sea salt
2 Tbs. vegan butter
1 small shallot, minced
1 Tbs. fresh thyme
sea salt and pepper
2 cups sliced mushrooms
1 cup sesame tahini
1 cup cashew milk
1 tsp. garlic powder
2 cups fresh baby spinach
fresh ground pepper
Fill a large pot 3/4 full with water and bring to a boil. Season with salt. Add the pasta and bring to a roiling boil once again. Reduce to a simmer and cook until the pasta is al dente.
Drain the pasta and set aside.
Melt the butter in the large pot and add the shallot, thyme, and salt and pepper. Once the shallots begin to crisp, add the mushrooms and coat in the vegan butter. Cover and cook until the mushrooms release their juices.
Uncover and add the tahini and milk and garlic, reducing the temperature to just a simmer.
Stir until smooth and creamy.
Stir the cooked pasta back into the pot, along with the fresh spinach.
Top with freshly ground pepper, and nutritional yeast, if desired.
