Tomato Pasta Bake with Garlicky Crumb Topping

Name: Tomato Pasta Bake with Garlicky Crumb Topping
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 30 min
Total time: 50 min
Yield: 5 servings
Ingredients: 500 g pasta (use gluten-free pasta to make gluten-free, fusilli or rigatoni both work well.); 1 tablespoon olive oil (to make oil-free, just use a few drops of water instead); 1 large onion; 3 fat cloves of garlic; 1 large can | 28fl oz/ 796mls crushed tomatoes (You can sub this for passata or blend up a can of diced tomatoes until smooth if that is all you have); ½ teaspoon chili flakes; 2 teaspoons mixed Italian dried herbs (feel free to sub for any dried herbs you like); ¼ cup | 4 tablespoons nutritional yeast (adds depth of flavour to the sauce - DO NOT sub for any other type of yeast); 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar; 1 teaspoon salt; ½ teaspoon ground black pepper; 5 medium cut slices slightly stale bread | You can use a bit more if you have lots to use up (or you can use a bit less | Use gluten-free bread to keep the recipe gluten-free); 2 tablespoons olive oil (optional but recommended); 2 cloves garlic; 2 tablespoons nutritional yeast

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This Tomato Pasta Bake with Garlicky Crumb Topping is a budget friendly, hearty & delicious meal that the whole family will love!

Pasta dishes tend to be real crowd pleasers and this Tomato Pasta Bake with Garlicky Crumb Topping is no exception. It’s cozy, deep dish pasta heaven and the whole family will love it.

It’s been a while since I shared a pasta dish. I think the last one to make it to the blog was my Creamy Vegan Pesto Pasta Salad and that was in the summer. It’s odd as pasta is a go to meal in our housed I have loads of different recipes I regularly make. I obviously need to get a move on and share them with you!

GIVE STALE BREAD A NEW LEASE OF LIFE

This Tomato Pasta Bake with Garlicky Crumb Topping is easy enough for a mid week dinner, taking no more than about fifty minutes tops. It is also a fabulous way to give leftover stale bread a new garlicky and delicious lease of life. I don’t know about you but we always end up with a few slices that are past their best by the time we get to the end of a loaf.

How to make my Tomato Pasta Bake with Garlicky Crumb Topping

Make the sauce (it comes together in minutes)
Cook the pasta in boiling water
Add the crumb topping ingredients to a food processor and blitz until fine
Mix sauce with drained pasta and spoon into a casserole
Sprinkle over the crumbs
And bake!

PERFECT FLAVOURS & TEXTURES

The tomato sauce is rich and deeply flavoured thanks to the addition of nutritional yeast and balsamic vinegar. Once baked together with the pasta and the garlicky crumbs, the flavours and textures are so good. The top crumbs become crunchy and golden and the ones underneath soak up some of the sauce. It’s such a good combo!

GREAT FOR FEEDING A CROWD

As well as being a great family meal, this recipe is perfect for those times when you are tasked with feeding a crowd. It makes a generously sized casserole full and can be easily doubled or tripled. It can also be made in advance. If you wish to do this, just get it all together in the casserole then refrigerate before the baking stage. When you are ready for it, bake as directed.

Hello stress free dinner!

Serve with a nice fresh, crispy salad and if you feel like splurging, a big glass of red wine too! 😉🍷

This Tomato Pasta Bake with Garlicky Crumb Topping is a real favourite here and I have been making it frequently. Even my very fussy teenage son eats it with no complaints. He also eats salad with it as long as I drizzle balsamic vinegar over it first. Now there’s a win. Moan free meals are always a bonus! 😉

LET ME KNOW WHAT YOU THINK

You must try this cozy tomatoey, crumbly, garlicky pasta bake, and when you do, let me know what you think in the comments below, or share a pic on Instagram. I am @avirtualvegan. Use the hashtag #avirtualvegan so I don’t miss them.