Creamy Vegan Pasta Bake

I created this recipe in memory of Mami, my husband’s granny in France who recently passed.

She was famous in the family for her macaroni which is basically a pasta and cheese bake but if you’ve tasted french cheese, you’ll know how special this can be.

Of course, I don’t eat cheese anymore so I created a vegan/gluten-free version which got the tick of approval by Paul!

Serves: 4 Time: 35 minutes

Ingredients:

Sauce:

3 small potatoes, cut in quarters

1 carrot, sliced

½ cup cashews

1 clove garlic

½ lemon, juiced

1 tsp onion powder

½ tsp smoked paprika

¼ tsp turmeric

1 sprig rosemary

¼ cup or more of water

Pasta:

1 onion, sliced

2 cloves garlic, finely diced

1 tsp date syrup

1 tsp fresh thyme

1 cup mushrooms, sliced

2 packets gluten free pasta

Topping:

½ cup gluten free oats

Method:

Preheat the oven to the grill, setting it to 220 degrees celsius.

Start by putting a small pot to boil and adding your potatoes and carrot to a steam basket. Cook for 15 minutes or until soft.

Meanwhile put a large pot of water to boil and cook pasta according to packet instructions.

While the pasta is cooking, place a small fry pan on medium heat and caramalise the onions, adding the date syrup when onions are translucent.

Add in your garlic for a minute before adding your mushrooms and cook until mushrooms have softened. Throw in your thyme leaves and set aside.

Once the potatoes and carrots are soft, place them in a high speed blender along with the other sauce ingredients and blend until smooth.

Drain your pasta, mix through your sauce and mushroom mix and add it to a baking dish.

Top with oats and place in the oven for 10 minutes until the top has turned slightly golden brown.

Once ready, leave to cool for 5 minutes before serving.

Enjoy x