This is one of my favourite pasta dishes. I love that the sauce has some sneaky vegetables added in (sweet potato and carrots), while still tasting creamy and delicious.
1 large sweet potato
1 large carrot
3 cloves garlic
1/4 c cashews, soaked and drained*
1 tsp dijon mustard
1 tbsp sweet paprika
2 c+ milk of choice
2 c broccoli florets
2 c chopped kale
pinch of cayenne pepper
salt and pepper to taste 8oz /227g pasta shells
Preheat oven to 240°C/ 460°F (220°C fan).
Cook the pasta according to package instructions (al-dente), rinse in cold water and set aside.
Add the sweet potato and carrots to a baking dish and place in the oven to roast until soft inside (about 40-50 minutes). Add the garlic cloves with the skin on 5-8 mins before removing the veggies from the oven.
Once out the oven, allow to cool for about 10 minutes. Peel the garlic skins, then add the cloves to the food processor, along with the sweet potato, carrots, cashews, dijon mustard and paprika, blend until smooth, then add the milk and blend again until super smooth.
Add the broccoli and kale to a large pot, add the sweet potato sauce and put on medium heat to simmer for about 5 minutes then stir in the pasta and cook for another couple minutes. Take off heat and serve!
*Ideally, you want to soak cashews overnight, if not soak in boiling hot water for an hour.