Pasta with Creamy Eggplant Walnut Pasta Sauce

heavy cream

🥗Healthier: Greek yogurt

💰Cheaper: milk + cornstarch

Greek yogurt reduces calories while maintaining creaminess

parmesan cheese

🥗Healthier: nutritional yeast

💰Cheaper: grated pecorino

Nutritional yeast offers a cheesy flavor without dairy.

walnuts

🥗Healthier: sunflower seeds

💰Cheaper: peanuts

Sunflower seeds provide a similar texture with lower fat.

olive oil

🥗Healthier: avocado oil

💰Cheaper: canola oil

Canola oil is cost-effective for sautéing.

Grill whole eggplants until soft and beginning to collapse, about 20 minutes.

Sauté bread crumbs in olive oil with cumin, chili, salt, and pepper until golden and crunchy.

Transfer cooked eggplant flesh to a blender along with walnuts, lemon juice, miso, garlic, salt, and pepper; blend until smooth.

Cook pasta according to package instructions; drain.

Sauté shallots in a pan until translucent.

Add the drained pasta to the pan with the sautéed shallots and the creamy eggplant sauce; thin the sauce with pasta cooking water as needed.

Top with crunchy bread crumbs and chopped dill before serving.

Cooking Techniques

Equipment Needed

Spice Level:

Dietary

Allergens