Last January, after getting through a stressful holiday season which saw us making our own products in a hibernating event space, we sat down and asked some of our most loyal customers (and our kids!) what they wanted us to make them next. We got a lot of great requests – and have more delicious stuff in the works – but more than anything else we were asked for a creamy version of our pasta sauce. Sure, we thought. How hard could that be?
So we started testing… and testing… and testing. Keeping everything plant-based is one of our core tenets, but we still wanted the richness of a good vodka sauce. Cozy enough to keep your spirits up during the dark days of winter, but without the heaviness of vodka and cream.
Countless batches of sauce in our home kitchens later, we settled on cashew butter, a rich, slightly sweet nut butter with a pretty neutral flavor that melded with our OG 10 veggie sauce like a dream. With a velvety-texture, it sticks to chunky pasta like sauce should. Plus we brightened it up with a little extra basil for a hint of the August sun when it’s dark by 5:00.
This creamy basil sauce is already a fan favorite at our tables. Catherine’s sons and my older daughter eat it with a spoon (her younger sister is still on the all-milk diet!) And like everything we make, it’s multipurpose. Simmer it with seafood, blend with broth for a creamy soup, mix into buff chick dip (trust us on that!), toss into our take on Carbone’s Spicy Rigatoni, or make this pasta bake worthy of even your fanciest friend’s holiday potluck.
This is a winter limited release so stock up while you can – or grab one of our updated mix packs, creamy sauce included.
And happy eating this holiday season from our team to your families. It’s cozy food season and we are here for it.
