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Vegan Rigatoni Al Forno (Italian Pasta Bake)
It would be a beautiful story if I discovered 'Rigatoni A Forno' on my last vacation in Italy. But unfortunately, the truth isn't as romantic as that: When I was a kid, I loved to order this Italian casserole from our pizza delivery service. I did this quite often and loved to eat the pasta directly out of the aluminum box. Like I said, not that glamorous.
I always liked the idea of the dish: pasta, meat sauce, and mozzarella cheese. So simple and so good! So I was surprised, that I've never made Rigatoni Al Forno completely plant-based yet. And it's even so easy to veganize! We used soy granulate instead of meat and a vegan cheese sauce (optional you can add plant-based grated cheese on top) instead of the mozzarella cheese. That's it!
Additionally, we used tapioca starch for a chewy texture of the cheese sauce. Tapioca is entirely tasteless, made of cassava and thickens sauces so they become super gooey. So let the magic begin, friends!
![R308 Vegan Rigatoni Al Forno](https://assets.zuckerjagdwurst.com/fh4xuzc0xygmczw7jv00y82c50rq/1110/740/65/true/center/R308-Vegane-Rigatoni-Al-Forno100.jpg?animated=false)
![R308 Vegan Rigatoni Al Forno](https://assets.zuckerjagdwurst.com/q2a8qw08c7bcuce0hrss46judz0g/1110/740/65/true/center/R308+Vegane+Rigatoni+Al+Forno6.jpg?animated=false)
![R308 Vegan Rigatoni Al Forno](https://assets.zuckerjagdwurst.com/6pweq27ygki24wdxx7mn276xkql6/1110/740/65/true/center/R308-Vegane-Rigatoni-Al-Forno101.jpg?animated=false)
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Vegan Rigatoni Al Forno
Ingredients
- 500 g (17.6 oz) rigatoni pasta
- oil for greasing the casserole
- fresh basil leaves for serving
vegan meat sauce
- 150 g (5.5 oz) fine soy granules
- 1 tbsp powdered veggie stock
- 3 tbsp vegetable oil
- 1 onion
- 1 garlic clove
- 1 tbsp agave syrup
- 2 tbsp tomato paste
- a sip of vegan red wine
- 1 tsp dried oregano
- 0.5 tsp dried thyme
- 0.5 tsp paprika
- 500 ml (2 cups) sieved tomatoes
- 250 ml (1 cup) plant-based cream for cooking
- salt
- pepper
plant-based cheese sauce
- 3 tbsp flour
- 3 tbsp plant-based butter
- 250 ml (1 cup) plant-based cream for cooking
- 1-2 tbsp nutritional yeast
- 2 tsp tapioca starch
- 100 g (3.5 oz) vegan grated cheese
- 2 tbsp vegetable oil
- 2 tbsp water
- salt
- pepper
Instructions
vegan meat sauce
- Soak soy granules in boiling water, add powdered veggie stock and wait for 5-10 minutes or until the granules are soft. Stirring occasionally. Afterwards, squeeze as much water out of the soy granules as possible.
- In the meantime, peel and finely dice garlic clove and onion.
- Heat vegetable oil is a large frying pan and fry garlic and onion for approx. 3 minutes or until translucent. Now add soy granules and roast for another 10 minutes, until soy granules is browned.
- In the meantime, cook pasta according to package instructions.
- Add agave syrup, a splash off red wine and tomato paste to the soy meat in the frying oan and let simmer for 2 minutes. Now add sieved tomatoes and vegan cream and mix everything. Season with salt, pepper, thyme, and oregano to taste.
- Add the cooked pasta into the pan, mix well and season to taste again.
vegan cheese sauce
- Melt plant-based butter in a small pot. Now add flour and keep stirring all the time.
- Mix in the vegan cream to get a smooth, white sauce.
- Add tapioca starch, nutritional yeast, salt, and pepper. Stir to combine and set aside.
- In a small bowl, mix the plant-based grated cheese with oil and water. This way, the vegan cheese melts much better.
Baking
- Grease the casserole with vegetable oil. Add the pasta-sauce-mixture and spread the vegan cheese sauce evenly on top of the pasta. If used, sprinkle vegan grated cheese on top.
- Bake casserole at 180°C/350°F for 20 - 25 minutes until the vegan cheese crust is golden brown.
- When the casserole is done, remove from the oven and let it rest for ten more minutes to cool down a little bit. Serve with fresh basil.
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![R308 Vegan Rigatoni Al Forno](https://assets.zuckerjagdwurst.com/s4xv0fv0ilrngn6vehtdg8ve53ld/1110/740/65/true/center/R308+Vegane+Rigatoni+Al+Forno31.jpg?animated=false)