Creamy Tofu Pasta Sauce
I know, right away this sounds like it is going to be weird. But it is DELICIOUS, I promise. Plus it's an easy, high-protein, vegan meal that just feels like eating a bowl of warm, comforting, creamy pasta. It's the perfect quick week night dinner or meal prep for the week!
Ingredients
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 tsp cumin
- 1 tsp coriander
- ¼ tsp turmeric
- ½ tsp paprika
- ½ tsp chili powder
- 1 tsp salt
- ¼ tsp red pepper flakes
- ¼ tsp black pepper
- 1 can diced tomatoes
- 1 can corn drained
- 8 oz. tofu any variety, drained
- 16 oz pasta of choice about one box
Instructions
- Place a large pan or dutch oven on medium heat. Add the olive oil and garlic and saute for 2 minutes or until the garlic is lightly golden.
- Reduce the heat to medium-low and add in the cumin, coriander, turmeric, paprika, chili powder and red pepper flakes. Toast the spices for 1-2 minutes.
- Add in the tomatoes and corn and continue to cook for 5-7 minutes or until fragrant. Season with salt & pepper to taste.
- Crumble in the tofu to the mixture and stir to combine. Use an immersion blender to blend all the ingredients into a smooth sauce. If you don’t have an immersion blender, you can use a normal blender and then put the sauce back into the pan once it is smooth.
- Reduce the heat to low, and stir occasionally while you cook your pasta.
- In salted boiling water, cook the noodles to al dente, about 6-7 minutes. Reserve about ¼ cup of pasta water.
- Add the pasta to the sauce and combine, using the pasta water to emulsify if needed.
- Top with either nutritional yeast, parsley or cilantro. Serve warm!
Notes
This recipe does work with any kind of tofu, just make sure to blend it until it is fully smooth! And if you don't have an immersion blender, don't sweat it. Just take the mixture off the heat and let it chill out for about 2 minutes before blending. Blend it up in your regular blender and put it back in the pan - voila! Easy.