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A quick Weeknight pasta – Penne and Broccoli in Doritos cream sauce. No store bought Doritos were used in this recipe. Just some spices and flavors together and voila!
And why did I make this? Well, the big food corps, apart from putting in humongous amounts of money into creating shelf stable products with weird amounts of chemicals, they Also put the money into finding tastes and combinations that tickle your tastebuds, make you addicted to things and keep you coming back to the product! Now, since they have already figured out the tastes that work, we can just reproduce it the natural way and say ahhhh yummm! and not worry about the processed chemicals!
The Doritos Spice mix has since been featured on Oprah.com blog section and on TheKitchn’s dedicated post!
Its been a long while since I munched on any highly processed chippi things. They just dont feel good in the tummy anymore. Disclaimer: It really has been a long time, since I tasted a Doritos chip :). So really. Just adjust the flavors to your taste, just in case my taste buds are off. I’d love to hear from a Doritos Connoisseur for adjustments!:) Also, you can change up the flavors to your preferred Doritos flavors. Add Daiya cheddar, yellow mustard powder, chili/black pepper, lemon zest/vinegar for the cheddar/lemony ranch/ spicy etc variations. And then once you find your fave spice combination, sprinkle it on Kale chips, Corn chips, cracker, burgers, nuts, quinoa or anything and everything!
This pasta is easily made glutenfree. In case you missed the previous post on Tiramisu cookies, here is the link!:)
For lots more Pasta/weeknight meal options check out the Collection here. Red bell pepper alfredo, Swiss Chard pesto, breaded Brussels Sprouts pasta and more!
Penne and Broccoli in Doritos cream sauce, topped with Doritos spiced bread crumbs.
No store bought Doritos were used in this recipe. Just some spices and flavors together and voila!
Ingredients
- 1.5-2 cups cooked Whole grain Penne or any pasto of choice
- 1.5 cups broccoli florets, blanched
For the cream sauce:
- 1/3 cup raw cashews, soaked in water for atleast half an hour
- 1/3 cup water
- 1 teaspoon lemon juice or apple cider vinegar
- 1/4 teaspoon salt or to taste
- few teaspoons evoo
Doritos Spice Mix: Gluten-free
- 1-1.5 Tablespoon nutritional Yeast
- 2 teaspoons dried onion flakes or 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1/2 to 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/2 teaspoon cayenne
- 1 teaspooon paprika, to taste/color
- a generous pinch of salt
- a generous pinch Rock salt/Kala namak, optional, if using lemon juice for wet uses. Not optional for dry spice since it does help add the sour. you can try lemon zest instead
- You can add Daiya cheddar or yellow mustard powder for cheddar, lemon zest, dried parsley for ranch, red chili/black pepper for the spicy variations.
Topping Crumbs:
- Toasted Bread Crumbs or Toasted Oats and rice flakes, coarsely ground.(1.5-2 Tablespoons)
Instructions
- Mix the doritos spice mix or blend in grinder to get a well blended mix. Taste test and adjust.
- Cook the Penne per instructions. Blanch the broccoli(cook 3-4 minutes in boiling water, then rinse in cold water).
- Blend the soaked cashews with enough water to make a smooth cream.
- Add lemon juice, salt to taste and half of the Doritos spice mix to the cashew cream.
- You can just toss the pasta and broccoli and serve at this point. I usually like to heat everything a bit so the spice taste comes out more and cashew cream doesnt taste raw.
- In a pan, add 2 teaspoons extra virgin olive oil, heat on medium.
- Add the broccoli and toss for a few seconds.
- Add the pasta and the cashew cream. Mix well. Cover and let it start to bubble on low heat. (1-2 minutes).
- Taste test and adjust spices and salt and take off heat.
- Mix some of the Doritos spice with bread crumbs or crumbs of toasted Oats and rice flakes.
- Sprinkle the crumbs on hot pasta right before serving!
Notes
Nutritional values based on one serving
Nutrition
Calories: 612kcal, Carbohydrates: 133g, Protein: 30g, Fat: 16g, Saturated Fat: 2g, Sodium: 504mg, Potassium: 512mg, Fiber: 17g, Sugar: 8g, Vitamin A: 880IU, Vitamin C: 67.1mg, Calcium: 53mg, Iron: 2.8mg
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Did you make this recipe? Rate and comment below!
An infographic about Why a Salad is more expensive than a big mac or meat in general. Makes you wonder, doesnt it.
Also, Dr Vandana Shiva narrates this short video about how your backyard garden is a solution to so many current world problems.
Do you have any suggestions for a substitute for the cashews as well as other tree nuts as my boyfriend is allergic?
you can use seeds and coconut milk. or you can make it with my cauliflower alfredo sauce which is nut-free. https://fettabbau-trim.today/2014/05/cauliflower-alfredo-spinach-artichoke.html%3C/a%3E%3C/p%3E
I’m looking around your site and everything looks good. I’m from a typically “mundane” family eating wise (although we do try to avoid fast food,) and trying to get them to try new things it has to not taste too “weird.”
I did wonder though – for the lemon or “zesty” flavor, is it possible all you need is some “true lemon” lemon powder? I use it for all kinds of things, not the least is that it gives my iced tea a wonderful fresh flavor. It’s good stuff. Maybe that’s why it tastes better in the sauce than plain dry? With the powdered lemon you can get that flavor dry too!
I’m gonna try making this Doritos mix – the guys love chips, and if i can make the spice without all the chemicals that they like, they’ll let me keep experimenting on them. LOL
Thanks!!
I just made this dish this evening. I’m not sure if I did it correctly, but we did not like it very much. However – the spice mix is excellent on popcorn!
great that it worked on popcorn! the sauce is a fusion taste so i can understand that it might or might not be a hit:) Thank you for letting me know.
pasta and broccoli, yay:) must try raw cashews as a creamy sauce – I’ve never eaten doritos!!!! I only like plain salted chips, cos of the dairy products used to carry the flavours (usually whey powders) – however, I’ll happily try your version:)
Stumbled on this older thread as I was searching the web, once again, for a Doritos seasoning recipe. I wanted to mix some up to put in cheese soup. There is something I can’t put my finger on about the taste combination that I just love, but so far I haven’t found the right combination of spices. Until I found this recipe! I see many posts about people wanting to make it but not so many from people who actually DID make it, so wanted to report back that this is really one quite amazing taste sensation you have come up with right here. I quadrupled the recipe (for leftovers) and while I wasn’t knocked about by the taste of the dry seasoning, there is something quite magical that happens when it is stirred into the cashew cream. The sweetness of the cashews, mixed with the tang of the lemon juice, mixed with the seasoning powder is really quite sublime. And Doritoish. For the topping we mixed some of the seasoning with some whole grain cracker crumbs that we happened to have on hand. I can tell you that this will be a much used recipe going forward, thanks so much!
I keep forgetting to reply to old comments.. Yay.. thank you so much for the feedback. i know right. i totally loves it with the sauce. i think it would be more delicious to use the sauce on the chips instead of just the spice:))
Thanks once again!
I really want to make this it looks so amazing but I can not find raw cashews near me to save my life. Could I use roasted unsalted?
you can use raw almonds if you can find them. roasted will taste very different, though you might like that taste as well. Or you can use a few Tablespoons of regular flour mixed in with non dairy milk for the sauce like an alfredo sauce.
Which seasoning do you use to make cool ranch
you can add some coriander powder, celery seed, garlic and onion powders and some apple cider vinegar if wet, or if keeping it dry then some lemon zest and rock salt . Taste and adjust!
How much Daiya cheddar would you recommend to make the Dorito Dust taste like cheesy Doritos?
Dana, the nutritional yeast adds a good cheesy flavor, so you might not need much Daiya. it depends on where you are using the Doritos mix, on chips or in pastas etc.
I am so excited about this doritos mix! I LOVE doritos and I think I’m going to mix these spices up and keep them in their own little container for putting on everything in site! 🙂 including your recipe. Thanks!
Thanks.. hope you like it!
You’re so creative, Richa! The spice mix sounds delish.
I know what you mean about fried junk foods not feeling nice in the tummy once you’ve kept away from them for a long time. I experience that too! Of course, I don’t have as much discipline as you do, I do have the occasional chip and bajji here and there but thanks to the bad tummy feeling, I have very small quantities when I do.
Thanks Sus! Its mostly the over processed junk stuff.. home fried things are still better:) though i did change my chickpea flour and now i get bob’s red mill instead of unmarked no date ones form the indian store..that made a lot of difference in how my tummy feels.