At the end of August, when tomatoes and basil are bountiful, make yourself a treat and prepare this quick and simple sauce. If you’re like me and you freeze tomatoes and herbs, pull this out mid-winter and you’ll still be able to taste the summer.
If you are also rich in zucchini, make this recipe even lighter with zoodles. Fettuccine or your favorite gluten free noodles will also be great.
Serve this with a True Food Kale Salad for a perfect vegetarian meal.
Creamy Tomato Basil Pasta
- 4.3 stars
- 30m
- 30m
- 30m
Ingredients
- 2 c raw cashews
- 12 oz spaghetti noodles
- 6 large tomatoes
- 8 cloves garlic
- 4 handfuls fresh basil
- 1 c vegetable stock
- 4 tbsp. tomato paste
- 1/2 c extra virgin olive oil
- 2 tsp. coarse sea salt
- wine, or water to thin optional
- 1 tsp. ground black pepper
Instructions
- Soak cashews overnight. Rinse, drain and pat dry.
- Cook the pasta according to package directions.
- Meanwhile, remove the core and chop the tomatoes. Mince the garlic and set aside. Chop the basil.
- Toss the chopped tomatoes into your blender along with the soaked cashews, vegetable broth and tomato paste. Blend until very smooth.
- In a large saute pan over medium heat, add the minced garlic along with olive oil. Saute until golden, then pour in the sauce and stir.
- Bring the sauce to a simmer, add the salt, and allow to cook for 5 minutes. If the sauce is too thick, add some wine or water to thin it out, a tablespoon at a time.
- Once the pasta is finished cooking, drain it and add it to the saute pan with the black pepper and basil, reserving some for garnish. Stir well.
- Serve topped with additional black pepper and basil.
Nutrition
- 1051
- 28g
- 103g
- 9g
- 57g
- 9g
- 16g
- 1131mg
Melinda
Meh. It came out very watery, gritty, and bland. I don’t understand the reason for the cashews, because they were still gritty, even using a food processor, after 24 hour soak. The sauce texture is very wrong and doesn’t stick to pasta. Had to doctor up the spices and add cheese to make it edible.
Vilmarie
delish! This recipe will require a high speed blender, NOT a food processor, to fully blend the sauce and ensure it isn’t gritty like another rater mentioned. I used my blender and it turned out perfectly!
Paige
yum!! Recipe worked great with my vitamix.
Gabriel Meyer
Straight from olive garden. Forget what you think you know about pasta, because this dish is terrific. Make sure to use a blender instead of food processor though.