Vegan Roasted Pumpkin Penne Pasta

Mmm today I went to Bendigo Wholefoods and bought some Kamut Penne pasta. It's a yummy pasta made from organic kamut flour, and boasts nearly 20gm protein per 125gm serve! We have been eating a lot of vego meals lately so the protein content really caught my eye. I knew we wanted some pasta, and I also knew that we had a half a pumpkin to use up at home, but beyond that I wasn't too sure what I was gonna make. Never fail, food inspiration to the rescue!

Insert diced pumpkin drizzled with agave syrup! Mmm this makes the most delicious roasted pumpkin around. Maple syrup works well too. I roasted these goodies for 40 minutes and they nearly didn't make it into the pasta. I burnt my face trying to eat them straight away, Yum!!

Here is the recipe that I came up with :)

Roasted Pumpkin Kamut Penne

1/2 a pumpking, diced
Agave or raw maple syrup to drizzle over pumpkin
1/2 large red capsicum diced
1 large field mushroom diced
50gm baby spinach
1 clove garlic
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Vegan cheesy sauce
1 tablespoon of vegan spread
1 cup almond milk
1 1/2 tablespoons of corn flour
5 tablespoons of savoury yeast flakes (really make the flavour)
A generous sprinkle of Masterfoods Tuscan seasoning
1 teaspoon of seeded mustard
A sprinkle of fresh ground black pepper and sea salt

First things first was to dice the pumpkin, drizzle it with agave and put it in the oven at 180 degrees (for 40 minutes).
The pasta takes about 10 minutes to cook, so get the water ready and boiling, and cook the pasta when you are ready.
Dice up the capsicum and mushroom and set aside in a bowl.

To make the cheese sauce, place the vegan spread in a small saucepan and heat gently until melted. Meanwhile whisk together the milk and cornflour until smooth, and then add in the yeast flakes. Add this mixture to the saucepan with the melted spread, and mix together until thick. If it is too thick for your liking you can add a bit extra almond milk until you reach your desired consistency. Next add in the Tuscan seasoning, salt, pepper and mustard and mix in well. I didn't use any exact quantities here, the key is to add the herbs to your own taste, starting with a small amount and adding up to where you think its just right! Once this is done take the sauce of heat and set aside.

The pasta will probably be almost ready by now, so you can drain that and set aside as well.

Now heat a large frying pan or wok and add in some Macadamia oil. Once this is heated crush the garlic clove and fry it until fragrant. Then add in the capsicum and mushroom and fry gently until soft. 
Now add in the cooked pasta and cheese sauce, heating gently and mixing until well combined. 
The roasted pumpkin should be almost ready by now, so add the baby spinach to your pan and stir gently to combine. When the pumpkin comes out of the oven add it straight into the pan and gently mix until all the ingredients are evenly mixed through. 

Now all that is left to do is pop it into serving bowls and devour this easy, cheesy, vegan delicious pasta meal. Mmm :)