Vegan Golden Beet Pasta Sauce

Start the sauce:
1 Heat the neutral oil in a wide pot over medium heat. Add the onion and cook for 5 minutes. Add the golden beets and season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring often, for 10–12 minutes until the beets begin to soften.
2 Add the thyme and stir to coat. Reduce heat to low and let the beets cook in the pot as you prepare the tomatoes.
Blanch the tomatoes:
4 Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil.
5 Once the water is boiling, add the tomatoes and cook for 3–5 minutes until the skins split. Transfer the tomatoes to an ice bath and then peel and remove the cores. Crush the peeled tomatoes with your hands. Leave the water boiling on the stove.
Finish the sauce:
7 Simply add the tomatoes to the sauce and season with salt and pepper. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, simmer, and add the chopped kale.
Cook the pasta:
9 To the large pot of boiling water, add the spaghetti. Cook until al dente. Remove 1/3 cup of the pasta cooking water from the pot and add it to the pot of sauce. Bring the sauce back to a low boil and taste and season it to your preferences.
10 Drain the pasta, immediately add it to the sauce, and toss to coat. Turn off the heat. Taste and season once more to your preferences.
To serve:
12 Divide the pasta between shallow bowls. Garnish with basil leaves, if you like. Enjoy!