Happy 2017! Can you believe a new year is here? I am once again excited for what I’d like to bring to you on this platform.  I have many goals for Nutritious Vida and perhaps have more than what I can realistically accomplish, but I am excited to share my many ideas with you!

If your 2017 New Year’s Resolution is to transition into a vegan lifestyle, then you’ve come to the right place. Sharing nutritious vegan recipes has been the intention of this blog all along. Following a vegan lifestyle is a rewarding experience, but it can be challenging at times. In fact, when I first became a vegetarian while in college 9 years ago, transitioning into a vegan lifestyle was challenging but by making gradual changes it became easier to adapt.

Lifestyle changes are easier to accomplish and maintain by making small, gradual steps. Changing what we eat and how we eat is probably one of the biggest challenge anyone can come across if there is a certain type of “diet” or lifestyle one is most familiar with. Whatever the reason may be for you to want to follow a vegan lifestyle – whether for health, the animals, and/or the environment – just the fact that you are choosing this way of eating is an accomplishment in itself. That is why my intention this New Year is to transform this platform into your spot for practical vegan recipes and lifestyle changes.

To start this New Year off – and my love for pasta – I’m sharing with you this super easy and delicious Roasted Veggie Sauce with Angel Hair Pasta. This recipe is one that I encountered after a long day at work and didn’t have the energy to put together an elaborate dinner. So, I put my oven to do the work for me by roasting vegetables I had on hand to be the base of my sauce and boiling some yummy pasta. This is a great way to begin increasing more vegetables into your diet as you begin to transition into a new way of eating.

Here’s to a delicious vegan dinner and a happy New Year!

Roasted Veggie Sauce with Angel Hair Pasta

Serves: 4 - 6 servings
Total Time: 35 - 40 minutes

Ingredients

• 3 tablespoons olive oil

• 3 cloves garlic

• ½ yellow onion

• 1 large zucchini (or two small)

• 1 red bell pepper

• 2 small carrots

• 3 large Roma tomatoes

• 2 teaspoons dry basil

• 1 teaspoon oregano

• 1 teaspoon paprika

• ½ teaspoon red chili flakes

• ½ teaspoon salt and pepper

• 1 - 1lb box of Angel Hair Pasta

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 425°F

2. In the meantime, bring water to boil in a large pot and cook Angel Hair Pasta following package instructions. Once cooked, drain pasta and place back in same large pot.  

• Save about 1 – 2 cups of pasta water to blend vegetables

• To avoid having the pasta stick together while it rests, pour a little olive oil and mix together.

1. Roughly chop onions, garlic, zucchini, carrots, bell pepper and tomatoes, and place in a large mixing bowl.

2. Add olive oil, basil, oregano, paprika, salt and pepper and combine.

3. Place vegetable mixture on a baking sheet and bake for about 20-25 minutes or until the vegetables are tender.

4. In a food processor or blender, blend vegetable ingredients until creamy (may need to add ¼ cup at a time of the pasta water to reach desired consistency).

5. Pour creamy vegetable sauce over pasta and enjoy.