{Recipe} Creamy Cauliflower Pasta -Vegan

 This recipe was inspired by Alison Roman's NY Times recipe when I watched a video of her making a version of it.

It looked simple yet scrumptious and I wanted to veganize it for my family.  I made a few swaps- using vegan parmesan for the parmesan  cheese and cashew cream for the heavy cream.

Ingredients:

1 pound rigatoni

6 TBS olive oil, divided

3/4 cup fresh, course breadcrumbs

1/2-3/4 cup freshly grated vegan parmesan like Violife brand, plus more for  serving

1 small onion,  diced

1 medium head of cauliflower,  cut into slices about  1/2" thick

1 cup cashew cream (1/2 cup raw cashews, soaked - pureed with 1/ 2-3/4  water)

1 TBS lemon zest

crushed red pepper (optional)

salt & pepper

To make:

• Make fresh bread crumbs. I toasted some Ezekiel bread and ground it up in the food processor to make mine.
• Make cashew cream, soak cashews in hot water for a few hours, then drain and combine with 1/2 - 3/4 cup  water in a high speed blender until smooth.
• Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil, add pasta and cook until al dente; drain and reserve 1 cup of the pasta water.
• Meanwhile heat 3 TBS of olive oil over medium heat in a large skillet, add breadcrumbs and season with salt & pepper.  Toss and cook until golden brown. Add 1/4 cup vegan parmesan,  allow cheese to melt and form small clusters in the breadcrumbs.  Transfer breadcrumbs to a bowl.
• Wipe out skillet and heat the remaining 3 TBS of olive oil, add onion and cauliflower.  Season with salt and pepper.  Cook, tossing occasionally until cauliflower is soft and the onions and cauliflower are starting to brown and caramelize (about 15 minutes).
• Add cashew cream and lemon zest to the cauliflower, reduce to a simmer and let thicken.
• Return skillet to medium and add pasta to the cauliflower along with 1/4-1/2 cup vegan parmesan and 3/4 cup of the pasta water.
• Cook, tossing to coat pasta and thicken sauce, adding more pasta water by the tablespoon if necessary.
• Remove from heat and add breadcrumbs, more lemon zest, red pepper flakes and more cheese to taste.  Serve and enjoy!

This is a decadent dish but full of healthy cauliflower to offset its richness.  The breadcrumbs really make it special so I highly recommend making your own if you try this.

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