High Protein Gluten Free Pasta Salad
Pasta Salad goes high protein, vegan and gluten-free If you’re a pasta lover you likely enjoy it hot or cold. Pasta, in the traditional sense, is a base for everything you add to it. The options are endless. But pasta traditionally means gluten, white refined flour and sauces rich in cheese or meat. This pasta salad avoids all the negatives yet still delights the taste buds. My new find, Banza pasta, is made from chickpeas and provides a protein punch with delicious satisfying pasta. This bean pasta won’t spike your blood sugar or have you craving dessert. Below I share how I made this dish, but there’s really not much you couldn’t add to a pasta salad. The real goal is to make it very healthy and adding a nice variety of healthy vegetables will make it colorful as well. I topped it with my homemade lemon Cashew Cream Sauce which is very easy to make a totally delicious.Let me know how you enjoy it!
Ingredients
- 1 box Banza pasta elbow shape
- 1 can drained and rinsed organic garbanzo beans
- 2 cups finely cut or shredded red cabbage
- 1 cup frozen baby peas thawed and cooked
- 1/8 cup finely chopped red onion alternatively you could use green onions
- 1 1/2 cups cashew cream sauce – recipe below.
- 2 cups red potatoes steamed (optional)
- 1 organic avocado chopped in medium pieces
- 1/2 cup organic cherry tomatoes
Cashew Cream Sauce
- 1 cup raw organic cashews
- 1/2 tsp onion powder
- 1/2 tsp garlic powder
- 2 tbsp nutritional yeast
- 1 organic lemon, juiced you can add more lemon juice to taste
- Zest of lemon
- Salt to taste
Instructions
Pasta
- Cook the pasta according to package directions. Once cooked, drain thoroughly and rinse with cool water until the pasta is cool to touch.
- While the pasta is cooking, cook the potatoes, if you’re using them, cook the peas and lightly steam any other veggie you’re choosing to add.
- Chop the uncooked veggies to your desired shape and size: red cabbage, onion and avocado.
- Add all ingredients to the pasta
- Top with the cashew cream sauce
- Adjust seasonings
Cashew Cream Sauce
- Cover the cashews with filtered water and let sit while the pasta is cooking. About 10 minutes is fine.
- Pour the cashews plus the water into a high speed blender.
- Add the rest of the ingredients: onion, garlic, nutritional yeast, lemon juice, zest and salt.
- Blend on high until sauce is thick and creamy.
- Taste and adjust as needed. If it’s a bit too thick and didn’t get creamy enough, add a little more water. This is a forgiving recipe. If you make it too watery just add more cashews, they don’t have to be soaked first. The idea is that it’s thick and creamy but easily pourable.
Notes
Is Your Health At Its Optimum?If you are suffering from any of the problems listed above—contact us for a consultation. Call (727) 335-0400 to schedule. Our medical clinic is located in Clearwater, FL. If you are not local to us, our medical team treats patients from across the country and internationally via telemedicine consultations. We help you find the underlying root cause of your health issues. To your health,
Dr. Vikki Petersen
DC, CCN
IFM Certified Practitioner
Founder of Root Cause Medical Clinic
Author of the books:
“The Gluten Effect”
"Hiatal Hernia Syndrome",
and of the e-book “Gluten Intolerance – What You Don’t Know May Be Killing You!”
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!
