Creamy Spinach & Tomato 'Beef' Sauce Over Pasta

Here’s another recipe from Engine 2. This recipe is light on the required prep but heavy on the nutrition. The lentils, spinach, cashews and whole grains bring an impressive amount of protein and iron, while the marinara gives that iron a boost with Vitamin C, which supports iron absorption in the body. It's a rich cream sauce you can feel really good about cooking and eating! Makes 1 medium serving.
Ingredients:
·      1/2 cup pasta (whole grain or gluten free)
·         ¼ cup premade marinara
·         3 Tbs. raw unsalted cashews, preferably soaked overnight if not add equal parts cashews to purified water.
·         1 cup fresh or ½ cup frozen spinach
·         1 clove garlic, chopped (or) 1 tsp. garlic powder
·         ½ can lentils or 2/3 cup premade, rinsed
·         Sea salt and pepper to taste
·         Optional: red chili flakes to taste
·         1 Tbs. nutritional yeast
Method:
1.    Cook the pasta according to the directions on the package.
2.    In a food processor or blender, blend the marinara, cashews (if not presoaked, 3 tablespoons purified water), spinach, and garlic (or garlic powder) until creamy.
3.    Heat the lentils and creamy marinara on the stove on low (2 or 3).  Stir frequently to prevent burning and sticking. Add sea salt and pepper to taste.
4.    Drain and plate the pasta, top with the sauce and the optional nutritional yeast and red chili flakes if using.

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