Creamy Mushroom Alfredo- my guest post on Vegetarian Gastronomy

I’m so excited to be able to do another guest post for an awesome site! I first met Anjali at a Body Back workout class and when we found out that we both wrote food blogs, we became fast friends. It’s so nice to have other people to bounce ideas off of and collaborate with, especially super nice ones! Anjali’s blog is called Vegetarian Gastronomy and is dedicated to vegetarian and eggless cooking but has many vegan and gluten free options and she is always looking for more. When Anjali asked me if I had a good vegan creamy sauce for pasta, I was super excited to share this recipe with her and her blog!

It’s no secret that my family loves pasta. Any type, any toppings, any sauces. I have experimented with quite a few types but the one type I had left was a creamy white sauce to satisfy our non-vegan Alfredo cravings. Although a cream based pasta dish tasted so good going down in my pre-vegan days, it always made me sick. So coming up with a veganized version of Alfredo has always been on my bucket list. My Cashew Walnut Cream Sauce takes center stage in this recipe. It’s such a great base for any time you need to get that creamy flavor without all the dairy. It’s so versatile and was a perfect addition for this mushroom Alfredo. A little white wine and some garlic really upped the flavors, and once the mushrooms were added back in, it made for an amazing sauce that in no way tastes vegan! This is a really simple sauce to make, and if you have the Cashew Walnut Cream base already done, it is even faster. The great thing is that in the time it takes for the spaghetti squash to cook, you can prepare the sauce. By the time your sauce is simmering, the squash is done so all you have to do is cook up some pasta and you have a delicious meal that will wow even your non vegan friends! I hope you enjoy this as much as we did!

Take a look at Vegetarian Gastronomy for the recipe for Creamy Mushroom Alfredo with Spaghetti Squash and Noodles!

This post has been edited to include recipe:

[recipe title= “Creamy Mushroom Alfredo with Spaghetti Squash & Noodles” servings= “Makes 8 servings”]

Creamy Alfredo without feeling bloated and heavy? Yup, here it is. Smooth, creamy, filling, comforting and amazing! I combine walnuts and cashews and blend until smooth to achieve this flavorful dish. Top it off with some roasted spaghetti squash and your favorite pasta, and you’ve got a meal that even the most authentic Italian will love!

Sauce:

• 4 cups sliced mushrooms (any variety or a mix)
• ½ a sweet onion, finely diced
• ½ cup white cooking wine (vegan variety for completely vegan)
• 1 teaspoon crushed or minced garlic
• 2 cups veggie broth
• 2 cups Cashew Walnut Cream Sauce
• your favorite oil for sautéing (or veggie broth if avoiding oil)
• Himalayan pink salt to taste

Noodles/squash:

• 2 small spaghetti squash
• sprinkle of Himalayan pink salt and ground black pepper
• 1 box of your favorite gluten free pasta (or any other favorite pasta)
• ½ -1 cup retained pasta water from cooking pasta

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 400. Cut the spaghetti squash in half and scrape out seeds, an ice cream scooper makes a great tool for scraping. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Place face down on parchment lined cookie sheet. Bake for 30-40 minutes or until fork pierces skin easily.

While the spaghetti squash is baking, make your sauce. Using a sauté pan, sauté mushrooms in oil or veggie broth with a dash of salt. Once soft, remove from heat and set aside. I put them in the pot that I will cook my pasta in to reduce cleaning extra bowls.

Next, sauté diced onion in a drizzle of oil or veggie broth until soft but not browned. Add in cooking wine and garlic. Cook down until the wine is about half of what it started. Add in veggie broth and Cashew Walnut Cream sauce and mix until well combined. Simmer on medium low until sauce thickens. Taste and add salt if needed. Once thick, add mushrooms back in and mix well. Turn off heat.

Next cook your pasta according to directions on package (again I use the pot I stored the mushrooms in), making sure to retain ½ – 1 cup of the paste water when draining. Add pasta back into pot.

Once spaghetti squash is done, take them out of the oven and use a fork to “spaghetti” the insides. Add the “spaghetti” to the pot of pasta and combine. Add in the sauce along with ¼ cup pasta water. Mix well and add more pasta water ¼ cup at a time until sauce is creamy and not too thick. Be careful to add pasta water in slowly so you don’t make the sauce too thin. [/recipe]