Meatless Spaghetti Sauce
In our family we usually have our spaghetti with meat sauce, but if you don’t eat meat or you are looking for a tomato sauce to put meatballs into, this is a really good one. It’s easy to make modifications to suit your pantry and your diet, so feel free to be flexible. It’s pretty hard to ruin it – if you don’t like mushrooms, or you can’t have dairy, or you have only powdered/dried herbs on hand, that’s fine. This can be done in the instant pot, or right on the stove in a stock pot. It’s also a good base for any kind of dish you might want to make along with it, including pasta dishes, chicken parmigiana, or meatballs.
RECIPE
2 Tbs olive oil or coconut oil or butter
Mushrooms
Sweet peppers
Onions – fresh and/or powdered
Garlic – minced and/or powdered
1-2 zucchini and/or yellow squash
Fresh Baby Spinach
Herbs – fresh and/or dried – basil, rosemary, oregano
2 cans diced tomatoes or 6 Roma tomatoes
2 cans tomato sauce (no sugar added) or two cans tomato paste
1-2 Tbs sugar (optional – if you like your sauce more tart or are trying to avoid added sugar, leave it out)
1 tsp red pepper flakes (optional)
2 Tbs butter OR 1/4 cup half and half or cream
Turn the instant pot onto the saute setting. Add 1-2 tbs oil (coconut oil, olive oil, or butter work best). Give it a minute to get hot. While it’s getting hot, cut up the mushrooms, onions, and peppers if you are using them.
TIP: I like to use mini peppers and cut them up with scissors because it seems faster.
Sometimes I like to cut up a bunch of onions and peppers in advance and then throw them in the freezer for future meals.
TIP: To prevent burning eyes and tears from onions – when dealing with onions, I cut off the two ends and cut it in half, peel off the outer shell, and then immediately plunge it into lukewarm water for a minute.
TIP: We really like to cut our onions into slivers or rings instead of tiny squares because they taste soo much better.
Add in the garlic, mushrooms, peppers, and onions. Saute for about 10-15 minutes, until they are cooked. They should be soft and browned but not mushy.
While they are cooking, cut up the zucchini/squash and add when the other vegetables are soft and browned. Stir and chop up the spinach. Add the chopped spinach after the other vegetables are cooked and stir for a few minutes until it is wilted.
Add two cans diced tomatoes, two cans tomato sauce, garlic powder, onion powder, herbs, sugar, and butter if you are adding it. (If you are adding cream then do not add it at this point.)
Pressure cook for 20 minutes and release the steam. (If you are cooking in a regular pot, just bring to a boil and let simmer for 10-20 minutes.) When it is done and you open the lid, stir in the cream.
The sauce should be a medium consistency, not too thick and not watery, and it should be pretty chunky with vegetables.
When you are ready to serve, top with freshly cut up tomatoes, basil, and mozzarella. We like to eat this over penne with salad and garlic knots. Enjoy!
