Vegan , Gluten-free Pizza Pasta Bake!

9/29/2019

Hi there, L here! So, as a recent vegan convert, I have been talking with J about how I am sick of people assuming vegans only eat raw vegetables, salads and fries...although I do love all of these things. In response to my wonderings about how to change the perception of what vegans eat, I decided to challenge myself to make a non-vegan recipe into a vegan recipe each week. So, here is week 1:

Pizza pasta bake! As a midwesterner, the casserole is a delightful Sunday dinner item that can feed a family of 6, or the two of us for several meals through the week. However, many casseroles are full of meats and cheeses.

Behold:

Vegan Pizza Pasta Bake (ALSO, GLUTEN FREE)

Ingredients:

Vegan pepperoni (We love this great recipe from Minimalist Baker!)
Splash of avocado oil
1 lb. vegan italian sausage
1 onion, chopped
2 cloves of garlic, minced
Jar of your favorite spaghetti sauce (I used roasted red pepper- it was DELICIOUS)
14 oz. can diced tomatoes
1 cup water
8 oz. gluten free ziti (We love Banza!)
2 cups dairy-free mozzarella (We love Daiya!)

Instructions:

Preheat the oven to 350. In a dutch oven or oven-safe skillet, drizzle and heat avocado oil at medium heat. Crumble and brown sausage with onion and garlic, about 5 minutes.
Add tomatoes and spaghetti sauce to the pan. You also need to add 1 cup of water- I swish the 1 cup of water in the spaghetti sauce jar to get all of the delicious sauce! Finally, add ziti and mix well. Cover the pan and lower the heat to simmer for 10-15 minutes, until the pasta is cooked through. Make sure to stir often to keep the pasta from sticking to the bottom.
Place half of the pepperoni on top of the casserole. Then, cover the top with the cheese. Finally, arrange the rest of the pepperoni on top.
Bake for 15 minutes uncovered. Let cool for about 5 minutes to let it set.