Homemade Spaghetti Sauce

By -
When I went off of sugar I started noticing labels more and saw that store-bought spaghetti sauce had sugar in it. Even the powdered spaghetti sauce mixes listed sugar as one of the first ingredients. So, I've played around with making a spaghetti sauce that my kids like that does not have sugar in it. The following recipe is what I use as a sauce for spaghetti, lasagna, and skillet lasagna.

1 lb. lean ground beef (or other ground meat)
1/2 c. chopped onion (leave this out if your kids don't like onion -- replace with 1/4 tsp. of onion powder or onion salt)
2 cloves garlic, minced (again, if your kids don't like fresh garlic, replace with 1/2 tsp. of garlic powder)
1 6 oz. can tomato paste
1 1/2 cup water
1 8 oz. can tomato sauce (I sometimes add 2 cans to stretch it more)
1 Tbsp. dried parsley flakes
1 tsp. dried basil
1 tsp. dried oregano
1 tsp. salt

Brown hamburger in a large skillet with onions and garlic (if using). Drain. Add the tomato paste and water, then stir in the tomato sauce and seasonings. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to low and simmer for 15 minutes. Serve over your favorite whole grain pasta.
If you want to make a lasagna skillet meal, add about 1/2 cup more water and stir in about 2 cups of uncooked broken-up lasagna noodles (or bow-tie noodles work well) after bringing it to a boil and stir occasionally. Cover while it is simmering. After the noodles are tender, stir in a few spoonfuls of cottage cheese and sprinkle mozzarella cheese on top and heat until it is melted. This is one of my kids' favorite meals.
Printer Friendly Version

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Healthy Oatmeal Cookies

By -
Image
This is my new favorite Oatmeal cookie recipe! 1/2 c. pure coconut oil 3/4 c. raw agave nectar (or a little less - you can use part honey if you wish) 2 extra large eggs 1 tsp. vanilla extract 1 1/2 c. whole wheat pastry flour 1 3/4 c. oats (not quick cooking) 1/4 c. flax seed (ground in coffee grinder) 1 tsp. cinnamon 1/2 tsp. baking soda 1/2 tsp. salt Preheat oven to 325 degrees, and line cookie sheets with parchment paper or spray with a non-stick spray. Beat the coconut oil with the agave nectar until well blended and slightly fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time, then add vanilla. Add flour, oats, flax, cinnamon, soda, and salt and combine. Drop onto cookie sheets by heaping tablespoons and flatten out slightly. Bake for about 12 minutes until the bottoms are slightly browned and tops are dry. Don't over bake.
Read more

Agave Peanut Butter or Almond Butter Cookies

By -
Image
1 cup natural style peanut butter (crunchy or creamy, or almond butter) 2 tablespoons of water in a 2/3 cup measure then fill the rest with agave nectar 1 tsp vanilla 1 cup whole wheat pastry flour (ground from soft white wheat) 1 1/2 tsp. baking soda 1/2 tsp salt Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray non-stick coating on a cookie sheet. Mix wet ingredients, then add the dry and mix until combined. Make balls with about a tablespoon of dough, put on the cookie sheet and, using a fork, press down one direction then again the other direction to make standard criss-cross pattern. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes. Makes 12 to 15 cookies. This is my new favorite no-sugar cookie! Printer Friendly Version
Read more

Whole Wheat Monkey Bread

By -
Ingredients: Mix and let set 5 min: 1 tbs. Yeast 1 c. lukewarm water 1 Tblsp. Agave nectar 1 tsp. Salt Stir in: 1 egg 1 c. whole wheat flour Then add: 2 tbs. Canola Oil 2 c. whole wheat flour (add extra flour if very sticky) Instructions: Let rise 30 min. Can be refrigerated until needed. Rollout on floured surface. Cut with biscuit cutter. Makes approx. 24 circles. Melt 1 stick butter and pour into Bundt pan. Take 4 circles at a time and place upright in pan. Let rise and bake for 20 min. in a 400 degree oven or until golden brown on top. This recipe is from Judy and originally used white flour instead of wheat and 1/4 c. sugar instead of the agave. A family favorite!
Read more