Oil-Free Creamy Mushroom Pasta

This is a easy and super-comforting dish that is like a belly hug at the end of a busy day.

Serves: 4

Prep time: 10mins

Cook time: 20mins

Difficulty: Easy

Ingredients

2 red onions
2 cloves garlic
250g mushrooms ideally a mixture including oyster, shiitake, chestnut, button
3 tbsp tamari/ soy sauce
100ml veg stock or water
250g wholemeal penne pasta

Creamy sauce

80g toasted cashew nuts (works out about 10 nuts per person- so still within guidelines)*
450ml soy milk or non dairy milk of choice
juice of half lemon
1 tsp salt
1 tsp garlic powder

To serve

oregano or herb of choice to serve
1 chilli (optional)

Directions

• *To toast raw cashew nuts just heat a non stick pan on medium heat, add the cashew nuts and keep them moving till they start to brown. This should take between 5-8 mins, be careful not to burn the nuts.
• Peel and finely chop the onions and garlic, chop the mushrooms into small pieces. Fill and boil the kettle. Cook the pasta as per the instructions on the back of the pack.
• Put a non-stick frying pan on high heat and allow the pan to get super hot. Once super hot add the onions and garlic and fry until they start to brown. Once they start to brown and stick a little add some veg stock (approx 1 tsp) or water to clean the pan and incorporate the browned flavour to the dish. This should take about 3-5 mins.
• Add the mushrooms and fry for 2-3 mins again adding a little water or veg stock if they start to stick. You want to ensure you are frying rather than boiling (frying there is little or no liquid or water in the pan vrs boiling the veg is submerged under water.) Add 3 tbsp of tamari/ soy sauce and fry for a further 2 mins. Turn off the heat.
• Time to make the sauce, in a blender add the toasted cashew nuts, soy milk or milk of choice, lemon, salt and garlic powder and blend till super smooth.
  Put the frying pan back on high heat, add the sauce in on top of mushrooms and heat up and allow the sauce to reduce & thicken for 2-3 mins.
• Once the pasta is cooked use a slotted spoon to add pasta straight into the sauce.
• If the sauce gets too thick add a little pasta water to reach the desired thickness of sauce. Taste and season to your liking. Chop the chilli (removing seeds if you want it less hot) and pluck the oregano off the stalk and serve to add flavour and garnish.