I noticed a new high protein vegan-friendly pasta on the grocery store shelves the other day… Banza pasta made from chickpeas!
I’m always excited to find new, healthy products to add my vegan diet plan (and share with all of you of course) so I was psyched to give this pasta a try. I checked the ingredients… approved! I cooked it up the same night. I was craving mac and cheese so I simply added a splash of Good Karma flax milk, some Daiya vegan cheese shreds, and sea salt and pepper, and wow, it was a hit! Compared to the mung bean pasta I usually eat, this pasta tastes more like traditional white pasta. It’s not as low in carbs, has less fiber, and is not organic, but it still has a great nutritional profile. Check it out…
In comparison to regular wheat pasta, Banza pasta has:
- Double the protein (14 vs. 7 grams per serving).
- Nearly half the net carbs (24 vs. 40 grams per serving).
- Four times more fiber (8 vs. 2 grams per serving).
Besides being vegan, Banza pasta is also gluten-free, soy-free, non-GMO, made in a nut-free facility and free from artificial ingredients. In fact it only has 4 ingredients! Chickpeas, tapioca, pea protein, and xanthan gum.
I checked out their website, and Banza offers a ton of recipes, few of which are vegan. I picked one that only had a couple ingredients substituted to share with you, but many of the other recipes can also be easily modified to make vegan.
Thai Peanut Pasta Salad
Ingredients
Serves 6-8 ~ Vegan ~ Gluten Free
- 1 box Banza rotini pasta
- 1/4 cup + 1/8 cup peanut butter
- 1 tablespoon agave or date paste
- 1 teaspoon sesame oil
- 1 teaspoon soy sauce
- 1 teaspoon rice vinegar
- 3 tablespoons water
- 1 teaspoon sriracha
- 1 cup shredded red cabbage
- 1 cup shredded carrots
- 3 green onions, sliced thinly
Recipe
- Cook pasta according to package directions. Drain and rinse under cold water until pasta is cool.
- In a small bowl, whisk together peanut butter, agave or date paste, sesame oil, soy sauce, vinegar, water and sriracha.
- Toss noodles with sauce.
- Toss cabbage, carrots and green onions with pasta.
- Chill and serve cold.
