Seared hearts of palm can look just like scallops. With their mild taste and melt-in-your-mouth buttery texture once cooked they can taste just like them too. Pair with a pile of pasta smothered in a creamy, garlicy sauce and you’ll have a dinner fit for any special occasion. What’s more, you’ll only need to spend 15 mins in front of the stove for this dinner with minimal prep work!
This is so easy to make, a child could probably handle it with with few issues. The hearts of palm will cook easily if you just leave them alone in the pan, don’t mess around with them and they’ll be happy. Cashews are the secret to this creamy sauce that you’ll swear has really cream in. Seriously, you’ll have dinner in 20-15 minutes and you’ll be ready to think it was made in a restaurant rather than your own fair hands.
- Makes: Serves 3-4
Ingredients
For the Hearts of Palm:
- 1 400g tin of Heart of Palm, drained and rinsed
- 1/4 tsp Celery Salt
- 1/2 tsp Paprika
- 1/4 tsp Sumac
- 1/4 tap Ground Black Pepper
- 1 Tbsp Oil
For the Creamy Spaghetti:
- 225g Cashews
- 375ml Vegetable Stock
- 250g Gluten Free Spaghetti
- 1Tbsp Vegan Butter
- 1Tbsp Olive OIl
- 4 Garlic Cloves, minced
- 1/4 tsp Chilli Flakes
- 250ml White Wine*
- 1/4 cup Nutritional Yeast
- 15g Fresh Parsley, finely chopped
- 80g Spinach (optional)**
- 1 tsp Lemon Juice
- Salt & Pepper to taste
Directions
For best results, I recommend soaking your cashews overnight in the stock. If you loose track of time then heat up the stock to almost boiling before adding the cashews. Once soft, blend the cashews and stock together until completely smooth to create a thick savoury cream. Put to one side till needed.
Slice the hearts of palm into thick rounds, no more than 2cm thick. If you have time, score a shallow crosshatch pattern into both ends of the rounds. You can skip this if you’re short on time but it will help the dry rub be absorbed. Mix the spices together and scatter onto both sides of the rounds.
Heat the oil in in a large, wide bottomed pan until shimmering and add the scallops. Don’t overcrowd the pan so be prepared to do a few batches if your pan isn’t large enough. Sear the heart of palm rounds on a medium to high heat with a tablespoon of oil. Once they’re in the pan, only turn once and try not to touch them too much so they can form that nice crust. The palm hearts should be done when they develop a nice crust on both ends and are soft and buttery all the way through, this should take about 10-15 minutes.
While cooking the palm hearts try to multitask and cook both the pasta and sauce at the same time. Cook your pasta according to the instructions on the pack. When ready, reserve about 500ml of the pasta water. At the same time, place both the oil and butter into a large frying pan. Place onto a medium heat until the butter is melted and add the garlic and chilli flakes. Cook until the garlic has softened and is just starting to brown. Add the wine and bring to a boil. Boil until the liquid has reduced to at least half.
Reduce the heat to low and add the cashew cream we whipped up earlier along with the nutritional yeast. Mix well with the reduced white wine before gradually adding the pasta water a quarter cup at a time until you reach a consistency you’re happy with, we’re aiming for a sauce similar to single cream keeping in mind it will continue to thicken as you finish the last few steps. Remove from the heat and add the parsley, lemon juice and spinach stirring until the spinach has begun to wilt. Taste and season well, adding more lemon juice to balance if needed. Now toss through the pasta and palm hearts.
Serve immediately in bowls piled high.
Notes
* Admittedly I don’t often have white wine in the house as I don’t drink. If you don’t have any to hand then a substitute of half vegetable stock and half white wine vinegar will work as well- just make sure you don’t skip any part of the simmer.
** I couldn’t resist throwing in the spinach but if you want to skip it, it won’t affect the taste. Alternatively a handful of frozen peas will work just a well.
Allergy Notes; Using the Gluten free pasta will ensure this dish is gluten free as well as vegan (provided your pasta is without eggs, most are), and soy free. I’m afraid it’s a little tricky to avoid the nuts in this one but you can purchase oat or soy cream as a decent alternative.
