Hidden Veggie Pasta Sauce with Mascarpone

A wonderful and delicious pasta sauce that can double up as a lovely veggie soup.

Use any veggies you have, making this a fantastic ‘clear-the-fridge’ dish.

I love the addition of mascarpone but leave out if you want to go dairy free or vegan.

I served this with herby breadcrumbs – Preheat oven to 180c. Whizz 3 slices of sourdough with 2 cloves of garlic and a small handful parsley, to a fine breadcrumb. Add 3 tablespoons oil to the breadcrumbs and toast in the oven for 8-10min or until golden, let it cool.

I also love to serve this with a chilli oil on the side (because I love chilli oil with most things).

A hand blender or food processor

• 4 tablespoons olive oil
• 1/2 teaspoon fennel seeds
• 2 large carrots, diced
• 3 celery sticks, diced
• 1 large onion, diced
• 1 medium aubergine, diced
• 1 large courgette, diced
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 6 fresh tomatoes (or 1 x 400g tin)
• 250ml veggie stock
• 4 tablespoons mascarpone
• fresh parsley, chopped
• 400g rigatoni, I used gluten-free
• parmesan to serve

1. Heat the oil in a saucepan on a medium heat, add the fennel seeds, let that toast in the oil for a few minutes, then add the chopped veggies and cook, covered until soft, stirring occasionally. Once soft, add the garlic and cook until fragrant, 3 minutes.
2. Cook the pasta until wonderfully al dente, drain and reserve 1 cup pasta water (NB).
3. Add the tomatoes, a teaspoon salt and the stock. Let the sauce simmer away gently for 10 minutes.
4. Whizz the sauce until smooth, taste and season. At this stage you might want to add pasta water to thin the sauce if too thick or stock if you prefer.
5. When you are happy with the consistency, add the mascarpone (leave out if dairy free or vegan), salt and pepper. You can enjoy the sauce as a soup at this stage and also freeze into portions for later.
6. Mix the sauce with the cooked pasta and season with parmesan, chopped parsley and breadcrumbs. Enjoy!