My First Original Recipe

I've been so excited for this to all start! I have planned out my posts, prewritten a bit on the advice of more experienced bloggers and now it's here! I'm so excited about sharing the next month of posts with you as I blog about some of my Firsts!

Up first....My First Original Recipe that I would like to share with the world. This is a recipe that I veganized for my mom. She really used to love the Chicken Amatriciana at East Side Marios. Like honestly every time we went there that's what she would order. I never really tried it since it really didn't sound like my kind of thing but she described it to me as a rose sauce with sauteed bell peppers, mushrooms and unfortunately chicken and bacon. When I went to veganize it I decided the chicken and bacon weren't something I was going to add. My mom isn't a huge fan of tofu and refuses seitan so that would make it tricky. I decided instead to go for a bold, creamy sauce with lots of veggies and hope it would hit the spot and it did...she really loves this one! And so does everyone else who's tried it. I have never written a recipe before so hopefully it's all clear and here it is! I will say I would have trouble saying how many servings this makes since my husband eats gigantic portions of pasta but I would guess it would be 6 servings since we usually feed us grown ups for supper and get two lunches out of it too (and it's always tastier the second day since all the flavours meld together overnight).

Pasta Amatriciana

Roasted Tomato Sauce

18 plum tomatoes, halved

2 small white cooking onions, quartered

5 large cloves of garlic, peeled

Salt and Pepper

2-3 tbsp olive oil

Cream Sauce

3/4 cup raw cashews (soak them if you are using a food processor or regular blender)

1 1/2 cups non-dairy milk (I used soy)

1 tbsp dijon mustard

1/4 cup nutritional yeast

2 tbsp light miso (white or yellow)

1/8 tsp fresh ground pepper

1 tsp Italian seasoning blend

1/2 tsp garlic powder

1/2 tsp onion powder

2 tbsp olive oil, divided

8oz cremini mushrooms (or white button, your preference), cut into 1/4' dice

2 shallots, cut into 1/4" dice

1 green bell pepper, cut into 1/4" dice

Preheat the oven to 400F. On a large sheet pan, place all the tomato halves, onion and garlic and add the olive oil, salt and pepper. Use your hands to make sure all the pieces are well coated with the oil. Let roast for 45-60 minutes until the veggies are browned a bit since this is where all the yummy flavour is.

While they are roasting, combine cream sauce ingredients from cashews through to, and including pepper in a blender or food processor. Combine on the highest speed until it is smooth and creamy. If you have a Vitamix there is no need to soak the cashews ahead of time but you will find it helpful otherwise, even if it's just an hour. Once it's smooth, set aside in a medium bowl and rinse the blender jar/food processor bowl. You should get 1 3/4 cups of the cream sauce.

Once the tomatoes, onions and garlic are browned and ready to go, add them without the oil/liquid in the pan to your blender jar/food processor and blend on high. I leave some texture to it but it's up to your personal preference. Pour the roasted tomato sauce into a medium sized sauce pan and add the Italian seasoning, garlic powder and onion powder. Stir to combine and put over med-low heat so it just simmers.

In a non-stick frying pan over high heat, add 1 tbsp olive oil then the diced mushrooms and shallots. Stir and saute until they are evenly browned. Add these to the simmering tomato sauce and add another tablespoon of olive oil to the pan. Add the bell pepper and saute until softened and starting to brown and then add those to the tomato sauce as well.

Now add the reserved cream sauce to the tomato sauce in 1/2 cup increments until you find the perfect cream balance. I usually end up adding 1 - 1 1/2 cups of the cream sauce but it can vary based on the tomatoes and your taste. Serve on top of your favourite pasta, we usually do whole wheat spaghetti but this sauce would be great on anything, even filled pastas like ravioli. Also it goes great with greens so add some cooked peas or broccoli on top as well!

Roasted Tomatoes, Onions and Garlic when it's done!