Pasta with Tomato, Chard & Sunflower Seed Sauce
Submitted by marinalva
Pasta with tomato, chard, and sunflower seed sauce where ground toasted sunflower seeds thicken a fresh tomato-basil sauce. A vegan, nut-free pasta with hidden protein and earthy greens.
YIELD
6 servingsPREP
30 minCOOK
25 minREADY
55 minGround toasted sunflower seeds are the surprise ingredient in this pasta sauce. Half the seeds get toasted and ground to a fine powder that dissolves into a fresh tomato sauce, thickening it and adding a nutty, protein-rich body without any dairy or nuts. The other half stay whole for a crunchy garnish on top.
Fresh tomatoes, tomato paste, onion, garlic, oregano, and basil build a classic Italian sauce base that simmers for 15 minutes until thickened. Steamed chard ribbons folded in just before serving add a earthy, slightly mineral green that pairs naturally with the tomato and sunflower seed richness.
This is a vegan pasta that doesn’t taste like it’s missing anything. The ground sunflower seeds give the sauce a creamy, almost cheese-like quality that clings to linguine beautifully.
Kitchen Tips
- Toast the sunflower seeds until just lightly browned. They go from toasted to burnt quickly, and burnt seeds taste bitter
- Grind half the seeds very fine, almost to a powder. Coarse-ground seeds won’t dissolve into the sauce smoothly
- Cut the chard crosswise into 1-inch ribbons and steam separately. Adding raw chard to the sauce releases too much water
- Use fresh tomatoes peeled and seeded for the cleanest sauce. Blanch them for 30 seconds to make peeling easy
Variations
- Use kale or spinach if chard isn’t available
- Add a pinch of red pepper flakes to the sauce for gentle heat
- Swap sunflower seeds for pepitas (pumpkin seeds) for a slightly different nutty flavor
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare the chard: wash, remove ribs, and cut crosswise into 1-inch ribbons.
In a large saucepan or sautépan, toast seeds until very lightly browned.
In food processor or nut grinder, grind half of the seeds until very fine.
Reserve remaining half for garnish.
Heat oil in the pan. Add onion and cook, stirring, until softened.
Add garlic and cook briefly. Add tomatoes, tomato paste, ground sunflower seeds, herbs, salt and pepper.
Simmer about 15 minutes until somewhat thickened.
Steam chard until tender, about 5 minutes.
In a large pot of boiling, salted water, cook pasta until al dente.
Drain; remove to serving platter. Toss with sauce. Top with remaining sunflower seeds.
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