As a growing number of conscious consumers are looking to more ethically sourced, plant-based products, we at Pasta Evangelists want to celebrate vegan cuisine, producing inspiring and enjoyable dishes that can be enjoyed by all. And we get it, Italian cuisine isn’t immediately accessible to those following a plant-based diet - exquisite cheeses and rich egg pasta spring to mind.
Enter our vegan carbonara recipe, our take on the wickedly indulgent and iconic Roman classic. For this special creation, we continue to honour Italian tradition, by pairing our gloriously creamy sauce with tangles of fresh spaghetti. That being said, we have been known to enjoy the odd deviation from tradition when preparing our decadent 'Carbonara of Dreams' - and this recipe is no different. We've created a creamy eggless sauce rich with THIS™ plant-based bacon lardons. Praised by The Independent for their 'rich taste', this plant-based pancetta has a deep, salty intensity that pairs well with the indulgent richness of the cashew cream.
This isn’t our first foray into plant-based cuisine, either. As you’d probably understand, we’re passionate about pasta, and we believe it should be a dish accessible to all. As luck would have it, vegan pasta is extremely easy to make, and fresh, homemade pasta further elevates an already tantalising vegan meal.
Our creamy vegan carbonara recipe with THIS™ Plant-Based 'Bacon'
Serves 3-4
Prep time: 10 minutes
Cook time: 15 minutes
Calories: 468 per serving
Ingredients
- 130g of cashews
- 50ml vegetable oil
- 150ml rice milk
- 10g nutritional yeast
- 2 cloves of garlic, minced (optional)
- A pack of THIS™ Plant-Based 'Bacon'
- Salt and pepper to taste
- 400g homemade vegan pasta or dried spaghetti
- Extra virgin olive oil
- Vegan cheese (to serve)
Method
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Boil your cashews for 15 minutes with a pinch of sea salt. Alternatively you can soak them overnight. This will soften them to help give creamy texture to the sauce.
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Rinse your cashews and place in a food processor along with with the vegetable oil, nutritional yeast, salt, pepper and rice milk. Blend until smooth and velvety. Chef's Tip: don't add all the rice milk at once, start with half and continue adding slowly after the ingredients have combined.
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Heat a saucepan with 2-3 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil, add in your garlic (if using) and stir fry for around 5-7 minutes until it begins to gain colour.
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If using, add the peas and continue to fry for a few more minutes.
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Bring a large pan of heavily salted water to boil - add the spaghetti and cook according to instructions. However, you want the pasta to be al dente, so check the pasta a good 2 minutes before the instructions. *make sure you reserve a good amount of pasta water.
- Whilst the pasta cooks, fry the vegan lardons with a dash of oil in a non-stick pan over a medium-high heat. Once crispy, set aside.
- Next, add your cooked spaghetti to the carbonara sauce with a little pasta water and turn off the heat. Mix in the lardons.
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Serve immediately topped with a sprinkling of vegan cheese. Buon appetito!
What pasta should I serve with my vegan carbonara?
Spaghetti is perhaps the most traditional pairing with Carbonara, though this pasta is not typically vegan. Allow us, then, to introduce pasta bianca, or ‘white dough’ - prepared using flour and water only. Stemming from cucina povera (poor cooking), pasta bianca also boasts the benefit of being incredibly easy to make, as the cooking tradition is one centred on simplicity, dictated by limited available resources. We cover our favourite traditionally vegan shapes, including orecchiette, strascinati and trofie in our article on How to Make Vegan Pasta.
Can’t get enough of vegan pasta? We offer a number of plant-based dishes on our blog - why not get started with these vegan pesto recipes?
At Pasta Evangelists, we bring a taste of Italy to your kitchen. Prepared using the freshest ingredients, our gourmet pasta dishes are perfect for those looking to enjoy restaurant-quality meals, delivered to your door, and ready in under five minutes. Order from our weekly menu today, and we’ll offer you 25% off your first delivery - simply enter the code BLOG25 at checkout.
Want even more pasta perks? Subscribers receive new recipes to try each week, with free delivery and 15% off each dish. Subscribers also gain access to exclusive gifts and perks, as well as early access to Pasta Evangelists events and classes.
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