A few months ago, our family began a different way of eating. Most of you have probably heard of the Mediterranean Diet (again, not really a diet, but way of eating.) It’s doctor recommended for heart health, losing weight and overall health benefits.
So far we are enjoying this way of eating. To be fair, we allow cheat days. Sometimes you’re invited to dinner and you eat what’s there. Or sometimes, you may just want to splurge and eat something “not allowed.” I consider this a great balance between taking care of your health but still enjoying life to the fullest. To be clear, the food allowed on this diet is very yummy, so I don’t feel deprived or ever hungry.
Skip to the mom hack…
I wanted to find a way to get my kids to eat more veggies. Enter, veggie-packed spaghetti sauce. (We eat with whole wheat pasta, to be compliant with our diet.)
We had tons of garden vegetables in the freezer, including tomatoes. So I made a nutrition-packed spaghetti sauce from bell pepper, onions, celery, zucchini, squash, cauliflower, garlic, and of course, tomatoes.
The ratio was probably about half tomatoes and half other veggies. I may add a few more tomatoes next time. I sautéed all the veggies (besides the tomatoes) then pureed them, then returned them to the stock pot on low. Then I pureed the peeled tomatoes and added them to the veggies. Finally, I added 1 lb of cooked, ground turkey.
I seasoned with oregano, basil, thyme, parsley, salt and pepper. Then I drizzled a generous amount of extra virgin olive oil. I don’t have measurements…it was just to taste. You need to add a sweetener. Some add honey or stevia. I added ketchup which isn’t the healthiest, but I needed more tomato. (Carrots would have solved the sweetness.) Also you may want a squeeze of lemon or lime juice. Just keep tasting and adding. 🙂
It was totally kid approved! My youngest, when I asked him, “Does it taste like spaghetti sauce?” replied, “Better!”
Win-win. You’re welcome. 🙂
I also started making my own seasoning without additives & preservatives. If you want to try them, I ship! Just visit my Facebook shop: Table Thyme Homemade Seasoning
, which is delicious, to make it a bit easier in the mornings as our crew gets up in shifts and cooking isn’t as easy.
I try to avoid stating the obvious, but “homemade cream soups” were not obvious to me in my first few years at home. I was so glad when someone shared how easy they are to make because I had heard how terrible canned soup is for you (loaded with salt and MSG and other preservatives).
