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Vegan Baked Ziti

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Ingredients
  

For the Pasta:

  • 1-pound dried ziti

For the Seitan Sausage Sauce:

  • 4 tsp. olive oil, divided
  • 13 ounces seitan sausage, crumbled
  • 1 large yellow onion, finely diced
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1 tsp. salt
  • 1 tsp. dried basil
  • 1 tsp. dried oregano
  • ½ tsp. dried thyme
  • ½ tsp. garlic powder
  • Pinch of red pepper flakes
  • 2 28-ounce cans whole tomatoes, briefly pulsed in blender

For the Vegan Mozzarella Sauce:

  • 1 cup cashews
  • 1 cup water
  • ½ cup refined coconut oil, melted
  • 1 tsp. apple cider vinegar
  • 1 clove garlic, peeled and smashed
  • 2 tbsp. tapioca starch
  • 1 tbsp. nutritional yeast
  • 1 tsp. salt

Instructions
 

To prepare the pasta:

  • Cook the pasta according to package directions; under cooking by 1 to 2 minutes as it will continue to cook in the oven; strain and set aside.

To prepare the sauce:

  • In a pot, over medium heat, heat 2 tsp. of oil.
  • Add the seitan sausage and cook until it's browning; about 3 minutes.
  • Remove from the pan and set aside.
  • Add the remaining 2 tsp. of oil, onion and a pinch of salt.
  • Sauté for 8 to 10 minutes until the onions are soft and lightly caramelized.
  • As the onions cook, anything stuck to the bottom of the pan from cooking the sausage will lift up.
  • Add the garlic, salt, herbs and a pinch of red pepper flakes; cook for 1 minute.
  • Add the tomatoes and sausage; cover the pot and bring the sauce to a simmer.
  • Turn the heat to low and cook for about 15 minutes.

To prepare the mozzarella sauce:

  • Add everything to a blender and blend until very smooth.

To assemble and bake the ziti:

  • Pre-heat the oven to 375 ºF.
  • Toss the pasta with about half of the sausage tomato sauce.
  • In a casserole dish, add a couple spoonfuls of sauce to the bottom of the dish; add about 1/3 of the pasta.
  • Top with about half of the remaining tomato sauce; pour about 1/4 cup of the mozzarella sauce over tomato sauce.
  • Repeat and layer the next third of the pasta, the remaining tomato sauce and the next approximate 1/4 of the mozzarella sauce.
  • Top with the last of the pasta; smother with the remaining mozzarella sauce.
  • Place the casserole dish in the pre-heated oven and bake for 25 to 30 minutes, or until the cheese sauce has browned.
  • Optional: turn on the broiler at the end for 2 to 5 minutes for further browning.

Notes

Use whole canned tomatoes for the best quality tomatoes, and pulse in blender or crush by hand before adding to pot; if using crushed or pureed tomatoes, instead of whole, then there is no need to pulse the tomatoes to chop up.