Artichoke and Mushroom ‘Creamy’ Vegan Pasta

Artichokes make the dish feel more gourmet!

I’ve had a lot going on in my life already this year and I have found myself yet again in a place where I haven’t got a good routine going! After a few weeks of grabbing food at lunchtime from various shops I got fed up and knew I had to start being more organised and pack a lunch. Not only for my waist line but also for my bank balance!

Pasta is a great convenience food because you can make it the night before and eat it cold or heat it up in an office microwave. I fancied something really creamy but since cutting out dairy a lot from my diet I mainly eat tomato based pasta sauces! Then I remembered my Vegan Creamy cauliflower sauce and so lunchtimes were back on track.

Plus for the price of a cauliflower this sauce tastes like it is gourmet! Add some artichoke hearts and a squeeze of lemon and you’ll be the envy of the office!

Garnish with chilli flakes for a kick!

This sauce is similar to my Vegan Smoked Tofu and Mushroom Carbonara but slightly tweaked for a simple lunchtime pasta dish 🙂 The cauliflower acts as a thickener for the sauce and the nutritional yeast gives it a rich flavour which matches the artichokes wonderfully.

Makes enough sauce for 5-6 portions (perfect for a week of lunch boxes!)
Vegan, Gluten Free, Healthy and Delicious!

For the sauce –

1 Head Cauliflower
300ml Unsweetened Almond Milk (or dairy free milk of choice)
2 heaped tblspn Nutritional Yeast
1 Garlic Clove (Crushed)
1.5 tspn Dijon Mustard
1 Lemon (Juice)
Salt and Pepper

To serve –

Approx 50g Dry Pasta per person (Use gluten free if required)
Handful Mushrooms (Sliced) per person
2 Artichoke hearts (I used canned) sliced in half per person
Lemon Zest
Chilli Flakes
Black Pepper

Break the cauliflower head into florets and place in a large saucepan with all of the sauce ingredients except the lemon and seasoning. Cook on a medium heat with a lid on until the cauliflower is soft.

Blend the sauce and add the lemon juice and seasoning to taste. If it is a little thick then add a splash more milk and stir until it is creamy but still quite thick. Put to once side. (This sauce will keep in the fridge for 3-5 days)

Boil the pasta until al dente and cook the mushrooms and artichokes (I gently stirfried them with a little seasoning). Mix the cooked, drained pasta into the sauce and then serve with the mushrooms and artichokes and then sprinkle over lemon zest, chilli flakes and black pepper for a kick!

Having this for lunch every day really made me feel a bit more back on track again with food and routine. It’s amazing how much food can change your perspective! After a few days of home cooked food again I started to feel so much better! I had a home made veggie chilli for my dinner every night which I will post this week 🙂

I have shared this recipe with the fab Virtual Vegan Linky Potluck hosted by Annie at An Unrefined Vegan. Click here to check out the other great recipes.