Sexy VEGAN Thursday?!

Welcome, lovelies, to another Sexy Vegetarian Thursday!

However, this week, I am changing things up a bit with a vegan dish. I've been really interested lately in the vegan lifestyle: I've read more articles and watched more documentaries about the food industry and veganism in the last two months than I care to admit to (not because I'm embarrassed about educating myself on a topic, but because it blatantly reveals how much time I spend at home alone).

I find it completely fascinating and compelling on many different levels. My research has given me cause to really think about where my food is coming from and how it got to me. I can't say that I want to take up this lifestyle, but I am much more motivated to choose vegetarian meals and to buy locally whenever possible.

To be vegan, by the by, is to choose not to consume, wear, or use any products that come from animals. No meat, dairy, eggs, honey, leather, silk, animal-tested or animal sourced cosmetics and home products, entertainment that exploits animals, etc. Those who eat only a raw diet are also considered vegan.

Veganism differs from vegetarianism in that vegetarians, generally speaking, do not eat animal meat. However, some vegetarians eat eggs, some eat seafood, and others eat dairy. It's a very diverse group of eaters :)

I definitely recommend that you do a little investigation into your food. I like that I now make more informed and conscious decisions about food than I used to. It's empowering.

Allow me to get back to the reason I am blathering on about a vegan diet: my vegan pasta dish! It's hearty, spicy, and very filling in addition to packing a lot of veggie power.

Vegan Bean & Tomato Pasta
A spicy, hearty sauce coats linguine pasta for a filling dish that your family or guests may be shocked to discover is vegan.

Serves 6

Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 20 minutes
Total Time: 40 minutes

Ingredients
half an onion, sliced
3 garlic cloves, diced
1 tsp. cumin
1/2 tsp. red pepper flakes
1/2 tsp. taco seasoning
3 Tbsp. olive oil
2 cups chopped tomatoes (I used 3 roma tomatoes)
1 can garbanzo beans, mostly drained
salt
1 lb. dried linguine

Directions
1. Cook pasta according to package instructions.

2. Meanwhile, in a medium saucepan, cook the first five ingredients with half of the olive oil until the onion is translucent.
3. Add the tomatoes. Cook until they begin to break apart. Pour in beans and a little of the liquid. 
4. Saute vegetables until the beans are hot.
5. Blend or process half of the veggie mixture until smooth. This sauce will have the texture of hummus.
6. Stir the puree into the remaining vegetables. Add remaining olive oil. Simmer until pasta is cooked.
7. Drain pasta and return it to cooking pot. Pour veggie sauce over pasta
8. Toss to coat pasta.

 ...I may have added Gruyere cheese to my pasta, rendering it vegetarian instead of vegan. If you want to keep it vegan, don't do this!

Enjoy!


Much love,
Danni