Cheezy Butternut Squash Pasta

Happy Monday Guys! The first day of the week can be a long one, and what better way to end a workday than with a bowl of pasta? Whether it's #meatlessmonday for your family tonight, meatless every night, or you're just looking for a healthier, delicious, protein packed and kid-friendly dish without all of the dairy you've come to the right place. This creamy but light sauce gets a big dose of protein from red lentils and crispy shreds of smokey tofu on top. 

INGREDIENTS

200g roasted butternut squash

145g shredded smoked tofu 

20g white onion

 1/2 cup red lentils 

1/2 cup steamed sweet peas

1.5 tbsp nutritional yeast

1/2 cup cashew milk 

1tsp coconut oil 

1tbsp maple syrup

1tsp paprika

1tsp dry basil 

Salt & pepper to taste 

Instructions 

1) preheat oven to 400. Cut your butternut squash in half length wise, remove all the seeds. Grease both sides using spray oil , sprinkle with salt and pepper and place facedown on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Remove from oven in approx 45 mins or when squash is fully cooked and soft. 

How gorgeous is butternut squash? 

2) While the squash is cooking , it's time to prep the other ingredients. Shred your smoked tofu block , and onion with a cheese grater. Bring 1.5 cups of water to boil and put the red lentils into it. Cook for approx 6-8 minutes, until most of the water is gone and lentils are really soft. Bring another pot of water to boil, and cook pasta of choice. 

3) Place cooked lentils into a food processor and process until completely smooth. Then add squash, 

nutritional yeast, cashew milk, maple syrup, paprika and salt & pepper. Process until completely smooth again. 

  

4) Heat coconut oil in a non stick pan and add shredded onion and tofu. Fry until crispy. 

5) Steam sweet peas. 

6)Once the pasta is cooked, strain the water and put noodles back into the pot. Pour desired amount of sauce into pot and coat noodles evenly. Place into a bowl and top with crispy smoked tofu, sweet peas and dry basil leaves. For a little extra cheezy-ness feel free to grate some non dairy cheddar on top. 

7) Enjoy! Let me know how you enjoyed it if you give it a try 😊 Any extra sauce can be frozen to use at a later date! 

 

Macros for Sauce : 30 P, 70C , 3F 

(This recipe makes approx 2 cups of sauce, adjust macros based on amount used for serving size.) 

Macros for crispy tofu/onion : 24P, 3.5C, 13F 

( this recipe makes 2 servings of crispy tofu/onion.)