Creamy Vegan Tuscan ‘Chicken’ Pasta

Serves 4 | Prep time: 30 mins | Cooking time: 20 mins

INGREDIENTS

Pasta & Vegan Chicken

• 400g vegan ‘chicken’ (we used ‘Deliciou Plant Based Chicken’ for this recipe)
• 500g fettucine pasta
• 1 brown onion, small
• 1/2 cup semi-sundried tomatoes
• 2 cups spinach
• 2 Tbsp olive oil
• 4 strips tofu bacon, diced (optional, see separate recipe in Notes)

Cashew Cream

• 1 cup raw cashews
• 1/2 cup soy milk
• 1/2 cup water
• 1 Tbsp nutritional yeast
• 1 clove garlic
• 1 Tbsp fresh lemon juice
• 1/2 tsp salt, plus extra to taste

To Serve

• 1 bunch broccolini (sautéed)
• lemon wedges
• vegan parmesan

METHOD

1. Boil kettle. Cover cashews with boiling water and leave to soak.
2. Prep cream – measure out all other ingredients (soy milk, water, nutritional yeast, garlic, lemon and salt) into blender and set aside.
3. Prep veggies – dice onion, roughly chop sundried tomatoes, measure out spinach and set aside.
4. Cook vegan chicken according to packet instructions. Set aside.
5. Cook pasta according to packet instructions.
6. While pasta is cooking, heat olive oil in large frypan on medium-high heat. Once oil is hot, add onion and cook until translucent. Add tofu bacon (if using), tomatoes and spinach, stirring until the spinach wilts. Turn off heat.
7. Drain the cashews, add to blender with the other cream ingredients. Blend on high until smooth.
8. Once cooked, drain pasta and add to the pan.
9. Pour cashew cream into pan, season with salt and pepper and gently stir though.
10. Serve immediately*, placing chicken on top of pasta. Serve with sautéed broccolini, lemon and vegan parmesan or nutritional yeast.

Notes: This is best eaten immediately, the texture of the cream becomes a little grainy when reheated. Won’t hurt you but it’s not quite as smooth. Tofu Bacon recipe can be found here.