Trying to add more greens into your diet? Do it the easy way: with pasta! Purée spinach, kale or peas into a basic pesto to instantly transform it into an extra healthy sauce — check out my recipes for Pea Pesto Pasta with Asparagus & Pine Nuts and Green Veggie Lasagna with Spinach Pesto for added inspiration.

The sauce for this Creamy Spinach Pasta is essentially a spinach pesto, but with a couple of creamy plant-based components added: nutritional yeast and cashews. Both incorporate richness, earthiness and cheesiness to make this dish seem much more decadent than it really is.

Now for the elephant in the room: pasta topped with Brussels sprouts. Trust me, it works. The sprouts simply make the pasta a bit more earthy and add a satisfying crunch. Plus, the more vegetables included means the healthier the dish, right? Give this Creamy Spinach Pasta with Crispy Brussels Sprouts a try, and I guarantee you’ll be pleasantly surprised.

INGREDIENTS

• 5 oz. fresh spinach

• 1 c. raw cashews

• 8 fresh basil leaves

• 1 t. garlic powder

• 3 T. olive oil

• 1/4 c. nutritional yeast

• 1 c. reserved pasta water

• 1 lb. Brussels sprouts

• 1 yellow onion, diced

• 5 garlic cloves, minced

• 1/4 c. dry white wine

• 1 - 8 oz. box of rotini pasta (we used Chickapea brand)

• Salt & pepper, to taste

STEPS

1) Add the cashews to a bowl and cover with hot water. Allow to soak for at least 30 minutes.

2) Heat the oven to 450 degrees. Slice the stems off the Brussels sprouts and remove the dirty outer leaves. Slice the sprouts thinly so they essentially becoming shredded. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper and sprinkle the sprouts evenly over the paper. Spray them with olive oil cooking spray, season with salt and pepper and toss well to coat. Roast for 7 minutes, remove and toss, then roast for another 8 minutes. Remove from heat.

3) Bring a large pot of well-salted water to a boil. Add the pasta and cook according to package directions. Before draining, reserve 1 cup of pasta water. Drain the pasta, drizzle with olive oil and set aside.

4) Drain the cashews and add them to a food processor along with the lime juice, fresh basil, garlic powder, 2 tablespoons olive oil, nutritional yeast and 1/2 c. reserved pasta water. Purée until smooth.

5) Add 1 tablespoon olive oil to a large pot or Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Once hot, add the onions and garlic and sauté, stirring occasionally, for five minutes. Deglaze with the white wine, then reduce heat to low and add the remaining reserved pasta water (should be 1/2 a cup). Cook on low for 5 minutes.

6) Pour the spinach purée into the pot with the onion, garlic and reserved pasta water. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to low and simmer for five minutes. Remove from heat, then add the pasta directly into the sauce and toss well to coat. Plate the pasta and top it with the crispy Brussels sprouts.