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a plate of Sicilian pasta sauce with cauliflower

Sicilian Sauce with Pasta

Sicilian sauce with pasta is a vegan - vegetarian - meatless meal that's both filling and delicious! Packed with vegetables, it's a feast for the sense, easy to make, inexpensive, and tasty.
Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 30 minutes
Course Main Course
Cuisine Italian, Plant-Based, Vegan, Vegetarian
Servings 4

Ingredients
  

  • 8 ounces rigatoni pasta
  • 1 can no salt tomato sauce
  • 1 can no salt diced tomatoes
  • 1/2 head cauliflower florets, cut into small pieces
  • 1 onion diced
  • 4 garlic cloves cloves, diced
  • 1/2 cup red wine choose your favorite wine
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil extra virgin

Instructions
 

  • Set a pot of water on the stove (approximately 8 cups of water) and bring to a boil.
  • While the water is coming to a boil, diced the onions, garlic, and cauliflower
  • Once the water boils, add pasta and cook according to package directions.
  • In a large sauce pan, heat olive oil and add onions. Sautee 5 minutes. Add garlic, stirring constantly, and cook or 30 seconds.
  • Add the tomato sauce, diced tomatoes and cauliflower to the saucepan. Cook over medium heat until it comes to a boil.
  • Add the red wine; stir and reduce heat to simmer. Cover the pan and cook 10-15 minutes or until the cauliflower is tender.
  • Serve immediately once pasta is cooked and the cauliflower is tender. Drain pasta, and place sauce immediately over over pasta. Serve. Each person can add salt to taste, if desired.

Notes

This is one of my favorite Lenten meals and a staple in our plant-based diet. The sauce tastes wonderful and the cauliflower chunks give it a hearty, meaty texture without the meat. It's packed with vitamins and micronutrients. An added bonus: if you are on a salt-free diet or a heart-healthy diet, using no-salt tomato sauce and no salt added diced tomatoes makes this a low sodium meal. The only sodium is what occurs naturally in the sauce ingredients and the amount in the pasta. 
Keyword salt-free meals, heart-healthy meals, vegetarian dinners, sicilian pasta