Chickapea Pasta Review + Sausage and Kale Soup Recipe

How do we feel about gluten free pasta? Do we love it? Do we hate it? Have we never tried it?

Now, I love me some gluten. Mostly in the form of pasta. But I’ve also heavily ventured into the world of GF versions. Everything from corn, quinoa, red lentil, black bean, spinach, zucchini-you name it, I’ve tested it out. And more often than not, they fall flat.  I sometimes compare them to avocados. One second they seem undercooked, you wait one more minute, and then they’ve turned to mush or a massive clump. They also typically SUCK as leftovers and either get hard as a rock or again…go the mush route.

Chickapea is honestly one of the few brands I’ve found that hold together well, taste like the gluten-y versions and even keep as leftovers. They’re also super high in protein with just two ingredients-chickpeas and lentils! Simple, is sometimes best, people!

I decided to add their yummy shells to a garlic cream sauce recipe I’ve been wanting to adapt from Rabbits and Wolves, and I figured adding GF pasta to a soup or stew is always a safe bet-and it was! I cooked the pasta a little al dente beforehand and then reboiled into all the soup ingredients for a few minutes, and man, was it amazing. I also tested it just as a side with veggies and more leftover sausage, just to see how the leftovers held up the next day. And I gotta say, I was totally surprised that they reheated well the next day, and hadn’t dried up into a clump.

I highly recommend Chickapea pasta, whether or not you’re allergic to gluten. And I realllly recommend this easy, delish recipe!

1 cup soaked raw cashews, drained and rinsed

1 cup vegetable broth

Juice of one lemon

1 small yellow onion, chopped

6 cloves garlic, minced

6 cups vegetable broth

1 tbsp all-purpose seasoning

1/2 cup nutritional yeast (I actually did 1/4 cup nut yeast and 1/4 cup Parmesan, with Uprise Foods Nooch It!)

Sea salt and black pepper

1 box chickapea pasta shells, cooked

4 cups chopped kale or other greens of your choice

2 sausage links of your choice, sliced (I love the Italian variation from Tofurky)

• Blend together all ingredients for cashew cream sauce until smooth
• Then, saute onions in a little avocado oil in a large saucepan over medium heat for at least 10 minutes
• Add garlic, all-purpose seasoning, salt and pepper and cook for a few more minutes
• Add 6 cups vegetable broth, nutritional yeast and garlic cream sauce and stir to combine
• Bring to a boil, then let simmer on low heat for 15 minutes
• Return to a boil and then add cooked pasta, kale and sausage and boil for about 5 minutes or until kale is fully wilted, then serve