Best Pasta Ever

 I made a pasta dish this week that I've been thinking about ever since, it was so delicious.
I was inspired by these diced San Marzano tomatoes from Italy that were preserved with a big basil leaf.  I'm not always able to find these tomatoes but the Costco gods smiled on us last week and there they were... I'm kind of wishing I'd bought more so I could have hoarded them.
I wanted to put together a pasta dish that combined the richness of cashew cream with a savoury, red-wine tinged tomato sauce.
Three of the main ingredients can be seen above: the San Marzano tomatoes, some dried parsley and the homemade cashew cream (recipe I used for this dish here).

I also wanted to serve the pasta with a little something on the side, another vegetable yes, but something crunchy and salty: kale crisps!

 Kale crisps are so easy to make, but the key is the kale has to be super dry.  If you need to wash your kale be sure to do it the day before, you don't want any water droplets hanging on to the leaves, and in all of those curly crevices.
I place my kale on a parchment covered baking sheet before dusting it all over with nutritional yeast, some salt, and then finally drizzling it with olive oil.  Bake at 325 for about 20 minutes, oven depending.

The sauce I made was really simple, I sautéed one shallot in olive oil for a few minutes before adding a tablespoon of dried parsley and a bit of salt.  I gave those ingredients a quick stir together before adding the tomatoes and about half a cup of dry red wine.  Simmer for 20 minutes, while your kale crisps are in the oven.  Meanwhile get your pasta water boiling and cook up your favourite shape!

 Plate your pasta with a good dollop of sauce and some kale crisps perched on the side.

 Then add the piece de resistance: a generous drizzle of cashew cream.

Best Pasta Ever

I'm definitely cooking this tonight for dinner.
It's Saturday too, what could be better?  I hope yours is happy and fun.
xoxDani