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Plate of Vegan “Chicken” Cordon Bleu Pasta Skillet

Vegan “Chicken” Cordon Bleu Pasta Skillet

  • Author: Monkey and Me Kitchen Adventures
  • Prep Time: 15 Minutes
  • Cook Time: 30 Minutes
  • Total Time: 45 Minutes
  • Yield: 4-5 Servings 1x
  • Category: Dinner
  • Method: Stovetop

Description

This rich, creamy, and tasty Vegan “Chicken” Cordon Bleu Pasta Skillet is full of feel good ingredients, aromatic herbs and spices, and tons of flavor. Whole Food Plant Based, vegan, plant based, oil free, refined sugar free, gluten free, no highly processed ingredients.


Ingredients

Scale

Cashew Cream Ingredients:

  • 1/4 cup raw cashews
  • 1/3 cup unsweetened plain plant milk 

Base Ingredients:

  • 1 cup yellow onion, fine dice
  • 4 oz. cremini mushrooms, small dice *
  • 1 Tablespoon reduced-sodium tamari *
  • 2 Tablespoons minced garlic
  • 2 Tablespoons GF flour (or flour of choice) *
  • 1 cup vegetable broth *
  • 1 cup water (of broth)
  • 2 teaspoons Dijon mustard (+/-) *
  • ¼ cup nutritional yeast
  • 1 ½ teaspoons ume plum vinegar *

Spice/Herb Ingredients:

  • 1 teaspoon onion powder
  • 1 teaspoon garlic powder
  • 2 Tablespoons dried minced onions
  • 1 teaspoon dried ground mustard powder
  • ½ teaspoon dried crushed thyme leaves *
  • 1/8 teaspoon smoked paprika
  • ¾ teaspoon sea salt (+/- to taste) *
  • 1/8 teaspoon black pepper

Other Ingredients

  • 6 oz. to 12 oz. GF pasta (or pasta of choice) *
  • 2/3 cup frozen peas, thawed

Optional Ingredients:

  • 1 cup soy curls (optional) *

Optional Toppings:

  • Freshly chopped parsley

Instructions

Pasta Boil Instructions

  1. Fill a large stock pot full of water. Add some sea salt to the water. Bring the water to a boil then add the pasta. Stir occasionally to prevent sticking. Note: You want to coordinate the completion of the pasta cooking time with the completion of the mushroom sauce. If unsure, then just wait to put the pasta into the boiling water once the sauce is done. Just turn the sauce down really low or remove from the stove.  Boil the pasta until el dente, drain, then transfer the cooked pasta into the sauce.  If the sauce has thickened up too much, just add a splash of hot pasta water or tap water to loosen it up. 

Sauce Instructions

  1. If adding the optional soy curls, prepare per package directions, then drain and squeeze out excess water, chop into 1-inch pieces, set aside.
  2. Place all the Spice/Herb Ingredients into a small bowl, mix to combine, set aside.
  3. Make the cashew cream by placing the cashews into a small bowl, cover with boiling water and allow to sit for 15 minutes. After 15 minutes, discard the water and place the cashews and plant milk into a high-speed blender. Blend on high until smooth, creamy and emulsified.  Set aside.
  4. In the meantime, in a large ceramic/enamel lined Dutch oven/pot or similarly large stockpot/skillet, add the finely diced onion, sauté over medium-high heat for 5 to 7 minutes until the onions are tender. (If needed to prevent sticking/burning, add a splash of vegetable broth or water).
  5. Add the chopped mushrooms and tamari to the skillet, sauté over medium heat for approximately 3 to 5 minutes to allow the mushrooms to release their water.
  6. Add the minced garlic, sauté for one minute. Sprinkle the flour over the sautéed onions, mushrooms, and garlic and then sauté the flour for a few minutes. The contents will look like flour covered lumps, that is fine.
  7. Stir in the vegetable broth, water, Dijon mustard, nutritional yeast, ume plum vinegar, and Spice/Herb Mix, stirring constantly over medium heat to allow the sauce to thicken. Add the cashew cream. Stir well to incorporate. Simmer for several minutes, then add the soy curls (optional) and thawed peas, and continue to simmer for 3 to 4 minutes.
  8. Then stir in the cooked pasta (see notes on amount).  Simmer on low for a few minutes then serve immediately with freshly chopped parsley.

Notes

*Mushrooms:  We used 4 oz. of cremini mushrooms (about 1 ½ cups – small dice). Please feel free to use your favorite mushroom.

*Vegetable Stock:   We use Pacific Organic Low Sodium Vegetable Stock. We love this brand because it is Whole Food Plant Based compliant, as it does not contain MSG, has no oil, and does not contain any highly-processed ingredients.

*Tamari:  We used San J Tamari Soy Sauce Gluten Free, Reduced Sodium.

*Flour:  We used Bob’s Red Mill gluten free all-purpose baking flour blend.  You can use the flour of your choice.

*Dried Crushed Thyme Leaves: We use Penzeys French Thyme. Dried and crushed thyme leaves are not the same as ground thyme.  Ground thyme has a powdery consistency. Whereas dried and crushed thyme leaves have texture.  You can use either in this recipe.  We used dried and crushed thyme leaves, so if you are using ground thyme, scale back to half of the amount indicated in the recipe and check for flavor consistency.

*Pasta of choice:  You can use your favorite pasta in this dish.  We used Dellalo Gluten Free Brown Rice Fusilli.  If including soy curls in this dish, reduce the amount of pasta to 6 oz.  If not including soy curls, use between 10 to 12 oz. of cooked pasta.

*Dijon Mustard:  We used Koob’s Dijon Mustard. As you probably know, Dijon mustards vary greatly in flavor and strength.  Feel free to use your favorite Dijon mustard.  Taste test the sauce after placing in the cashew cream to build the flavor to suit your personal preferences.

*Soy Curls:  We found it challenging to find soy curls in our local grocery stores.  We ended up buying them from Amazon.  We purchased Butler Soy Curls 100% natural, no additives or preservatives, non-GMO, grown without chemical pesticides.  However, if you want to make this dish without soy curls, just increase the amount of pasta.  See above.

*Ume Plum Vinegar:  We used Eden Ume Plum Vinegar. Ume Plum Vinegar is perfect for this recipe as it has that deliciously tangy flavor which complements the Dijon mustard and pops the flavor. It is relatively inexpensive.  We use it quite frequently and it worth requesting it from your local grocery or ordering off of Amazon in our humble opinion. There really isn’t a great substitute for it.  You can leave it out and just increase the Dijon mustard understanding that the flavor will be different.

*Sea Salt:  Please adjust the sea salt based upon your family’s sea salt preferences and/or based upon dietary needs.

*Servings:  4-5

*Storage:  Refrigerate and use within 5 days.