Vegan Roasted Red Pepper Sauce

Vegan Roasted Red Pepper Sauce made with roasted peppers and cashews makes for a deliciously easy sauce.  Serve over pasta, with sandwiches, bowls, and more. Gluten-free. 

Fall has officially swept in, and I am officially ready for comfort food. 

Healthy comfort food, if possible. But comfort food all the same.

This vegan roasted red pepper sauce got its inspiration from my husband’s desire to mix up pasta night.

While I could eat the same pasta and red sauce for weeks on end, I realize this is not something everyone enjoys. 

So, a creamy roasted red pepper sauce that was not only good with pasta but with a variety of recipes seemed like the right solution.

Vegan Roasted Red Pepper Sauce Ingredients

There are two main ingredients in this sauce: red peppers and cashews.

Roasting your own red peppers at home is easy. Once roasted, the peppers combine with soaked cashews, garlic, and seasoning in the blender. And voila! A flavorful, insanely creamy sauce.

Here’s what you’ll need:

• Fresh red peppers
• Raw cashews
• Minced garlic
• Lemon juice
• Nutritional Yeast
• Salt and pepper

My favorite part about this rich, dairy-free sauce? It can be prepped a day ahead or used immediately. 

Fold it into some cooked pasta, or use with meatballs or a grain and veggie bowl. The possibilities are endless!

Looking for other cool-weather, healthy, comfort foods? Laura’s sausage kale soup should be on your list! Or, gluten-free pizza always hits the spot!

More Savory Recipes:

Creamy Sweet Potato Soup

Salsa Verde Quinoa Chili

Roasted Fennel and White Bean Tomato Soup

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Vegan Roasted Red Pepper Sauce

Vegan Roasted Red Pepper Sauce made with roasted peppers and cashews makes for a deliciously easy sauce.  Serve over pasta, with sandwiches, bowls, fish, and more. Gluten-free. 

Ingredients

• 3/4 cup raw cashews soaked
• 3 medium red peppers
• 4 cloves minced garlic
• 2 tablespoons nutritional yeast
• juice of half lemon
• 1/4 teaspoon salt more to taste if needed
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper more to taste if needed
• 1/4 cup water

Instructions

1. Place cashews in the blender and cover with boiling water. Allow to sit at least 10 minutes or while peppers are roasting.

2. Preheat the broiler on high. Line a rimmed baking sheet with foil. Lay your red peppers on their sides evenly on baking sheet.

3. Place baking sheet on oven rack in the top third of the oven. Broil peppers for 20 minutes, flipping them over at the halfway point. You want the outside to be good and charred.

4. Remove baking sheet from oven and using tongs, transfer peppers to a bowl. Cover bowl with foil or a plate. Allow peppers to steam for 10 to 20 minutes.

5. Once steamed, transfer peppers to a cutting board. Remove stem, core, seeds, and skin. The skin should pull away easily. Slice into strips.

6. Drain the water from the blender and place the soaked cashews back into the blender. Transfer roasted red peppers to blender. Add garlic, nutritional yeast, lemon juice, salt and pepper, and 1/4 cup water. Blend until smooth.

7. To Store: Keep roasted red pepper sauce in an airtight container for 2-3 days in the refrigerator.

   To Heat: Keep on the stove over low heat, stirring frequently. Pour over pasta, sandwiches, bowls and more.