When I was in Italy, I brought home sun dried tomatoes from the Rialto Outdoor Market in Venice.
The flavor of the tomatoes is so incredible! I also had some organic whole wheat pasta I brought back. It was an organic, whole wheat mezzi (half) rigatoni from Delverde.
I decided to make pasta with sun dried tomatoes and coconut cream sauce. It is a vegan recipe, but if you prefer you can substitute milk or cream for the coconut milk.
Here is the recipe I created for this pasta with sun dried tomatoes, mushrooms and fresh herbs.
Pasta with Sun Dried Tomatoes and Coconut Cream Sauce Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 pound whole wheat pasta
- 5 tablespoons Earth Balance Buttery Spread or butter
- 1 to 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 6 medium mushrooms
- 4 cloves garlic
- ¼ cup flour
- 2 cups vegetable broth
- 1 cup coconut milk
- 2/3 cup sun dried tomatoes, julienned
- ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes
- ½ teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
- ¼ cup fresh parsley, minced
- ¼ cup fresh basil, minced
- 2 tablespoons fresh oregano, minced
- salt to taste – optional
- additional chopped herbs or parsley for garnish
- grated parmesan for garnish – optional
Directions
- Slice mushrooms thinly, set aside. Mince garlic, set aside. Minced herbs, set aside.
- Bring a pot of water to a boil and begin to cook the pasta according to the directions on the package.
- While pasta is cooking, continue with the sauce. When the pasta is done, drain in colander reserving about ¼ cup pasta water. Do NOT rinse pasta with cold water.
- In a medium sauté pan, turn heat to medium high. Add 1 tablespoon buttery spread, let melt a few seconds and then add 1 clove of minced garlic. Stir and simmer for 30 seconds, then add the sliced mushrooms. Let cook until just soft, about 2 to 3 minutes. Remove from pan with a slotted spoon, and set aside.
- In the pan, add the rest of the buttery spread and olive oil. Let melt, then add the flour and whisk for 2 minutes, adjusting heat if necessary so the flour mixture does not brown.
- Slowly add the vegetable stock, stirring with a whisk.
- Add the coconut cream and continue to whisk.
- Add the red pepper flakes, black pepper, sun dried tomatoes and the mushrooms and stir with a wooden spoon.
- Stir in the fresh herbs and optional salt. Remove from heat.
- Add the hot pasta to the cream sauce, stir gently. Serve and garnish with additional chopped herbs, parsley or grated parmesan cheese.
