easy, delicious, vegan
Looking for a delicious, nutritious dinner with minimal effort? Look no further! This pasta dish is easy to make and reheats well. Perfect for a busy weeknight dinner.
ingredients
28 oz. tomato sauce (I like Cento)
6 oz. tomato paste
6 cloves of garlic
12 fresh basil leaves (or 1 tablespoon dried basil)
2 tablespoons crushed red pepper
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon onion powder
1 teaspoon oregano
1 large yellow onion, chopped
1 large green pepper, chopped
8 oz. baby bella mushrooms, sliced
1 package Gardein meatless meatballs
16 oz. rigatoni pasta
directions
step one: start the sauce
The first thing you want to do is get your sauce cooking. The longer it cooks, the better it will taste. You ideally want to give a good pasta sauce hours to cook and soak in the herbs and spices. I like to cook an amazing ITALIAN SAUCE and keep some in my freezer.
In times where you do not have a freezer full of Italian pasta sauce, you can easily cheat!
Add a teaspoon of olive oil to your sauce pot and turn the heat to medium. Add the chopped garlic and half of your onion, lightly season with salt and pepper. Cook for 2-3 minutes.
Empty the can of tomato paste and tomato sauce into the pot with the onion and garlic. Stir and add the garlic powder, onion powder, oregano, and crushed red pepper. Cover with a lid and let simmer on medium-low for at least 30 minutes. Be sure to stir every few minutes.
step two: cook the veggies
Coat a cast iron skillet with olive oil and turn heat to medium. Add the rest of your onion and the chopped green pepper and cook for 4 minutes. Add the mushrooms and continue to cook for 2 more minutes. Remove from heat.
step three: cook pasta
In a large pot, add water and a generous amount of salt. Bring to a boil then add pasta. Cook according to package instructions, usually 8-11 minutes. Drain and add pasta back to pot.
step four: cook vegan meatballs
While the pasta is cooking, place meatballs in a microwave-safe dish and cover with some of your sauce. Cook according to package instructions, then slice each meatball into fifths. Add the meatball pieces, and the sauce you used to cook it in, back in to the sauce pot and cover. Continue to cook in the sauce for another five minutes.
step five: mix it all together
Add the cooked vegetables and “meat” sauce to the pasta and mix gently.
step six: enjoy!
acceptably imperfect 