Not every meal has to be the fanciest dish in the land, in fact, more often then not, I make one pot meals that are inexpensive, and can be saved/reheated many times over!!

I like easy cooking, I am not someone who will spend hours upon hours in the kitchen, it just isnt who I am. I enjoy a delicious, savoury and nutrition dense meal with little to no work...isn't that the dream after all?

When I was stuck a few days ago for a meal to make, I grabbed every leftover I had in my fridge and threw them together! I couldn't have been more happy with the result, and a big reason for that is the sauce. Almost any less than great meal can be turned around with a solid sauce. This cashew 'cheez' sauce is a go-to of mine. And I use it with a lot of different meals. Cashews are a good sound of magnesium, and an important nutrient for your metabolism. They may even reduce the risk of heart disease in those who consume them regularly. 

In a pot of boiling water, I cooked two cups of amaranth quinoa pasta (available at Costco) and it is AHHHMAZINGLY nutritious. If you really wanna start taking your health into consideration, skip the basic white or whole wheat pastas at the store and opt for quinoa, black bean, mung bean, amaranth or brown rice pastas. Yes they all exist. Yes they are all inexpensive, and YES, they are all way healthier then their processed cousins. 

I then sautéed the leftover veggies I had in my fridge (onions, zucchini spinach) in a pan with a bit of olive oil and some garlic.

Once the pasta was cooked, I would begin on my ‘cheez’ sauce. What you will need is

-       1 cup raw cashews

-       ½ onion, diced

-       1 jalapeno, diced (I tend to buy the pre cut in the bottle kind, easier and they store better)

-       3 cloves of garlic

*cook these together in a small pan with a bit of olive oil, till onions are sweating and cashews are slightly brown*

Then in a blender add:

-        ½ cup nutritional yeast (found in any organics or health food section of grocery stores)

-       1 cup of water

-       1 tsp paprika, dry mustard powder and turmeric

-       ½ tsp nutmeg and pepper

-       1 tbsp salt

Wait till onion and cashew mixture has cooled, put into blender and combine all ingredients. The result is an incredibly delicious sauce, that works with pretty much everything!

I then combined my pasta with my cooked veggies, mixed in the sauce, and baked on 400 for 30 minutes. Let sit and enjoy!