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Creamy Caramelized Onion & Yellow Squash Pasta (Vegan)

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Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 50 minutes
Total Time 1 hour 5 minutes
Servings 3 -4
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Ingredients

  • ⅓ cup raw cashews, soaked for at least 2 hours and drained
  • 1 cup water
  • 1 tablespoon white miso
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • 1 medium Vidalia onion, sliced
  • 3 medium yellow squash (465 grams), sliced
  • 1 clove garlic, sliced
  • salt and pepper, to taste
  • 1 tablespoon lemon juice
  • ½ cup fresh basil leaves, torn or chopped
  • 454 grams (1 lb) dried pasta
  • 1 cup reserved pasta cooking water (you won’t need all of it)

Instructions

Make the cashew cream.

  • In an upright blender, combine the drained cashews, water, and miso. Blend on high until completely smooth. Set aside, keeping the cream in the blender.

Cook the caramelized onions and yellow squash.

  • Place a large skillet over medium heat. Once hot, pour in the olive oil. Add the sliced onions and stir. Lower the heat to medium-low and keep cooking until the onions have shrunk down considerably and are starting to take on a light golden hue, about 20 minutes. Stir often.
  • Then, add the yellow squash and stir. Bring the heat up to just under medium. Season liberally with salt and pepper. Continue cooking the onions and yellow squash, stirring often, until both are jammy, light golden brown, and nicely caramelized, about 30 minutes. If the pan is drying up and vegetables are browning too fast, add splashes of water.
  • Add the caramelized onions and yellow squash to the blender with the cashew cream that you made earlier. Add the lemon juice as well. Blend this mixture on high until completely smooth. Check the sauce base for seasoning and add more salt and pepper if you like.

Cook pasta and assemble.

  • Cook the pasta according to package directions in salted boiling water. Before draining, reserve 1 cup of the pasta cooking water.
  • Return the large skillet to the stove over medium heat. Pour in the blended caramelized onion and yellow squash sauce and add the cooked pasta. Stir to combine, adding more pasta water if necessary to loosen the mixture up.
  • Stir in the basil leaves and serve immediately! I like to finish this with lots of black pepper.

Equipment

  • Blender

Recipe Notes

  • I love using a Vidalia onion for caramelized onions when they’re available. Extra sweet! With that said, you could substitute with a large yellow cooking onion.
  • I used casarecce for my pasta here. Penne or regular spaghetti would also be nice!
  • If you forgot to soak cashews (or you’re just feeling a little lazy—I get it!), I recommend using 1 ½ cups rich unsweetened plant-based milk or creamer. Just quickly blend it with the miso, and then add the caramelized onions and yellow squash when they’re done.
A vegan pasta built on caramelized squash and onion blended into a cashew-miso cream, ready in about 50 minutes with just 8 ingredients beyond pantry staples.