Tag: vegetables

Spicy Spaghetti with Beef & Vegetables

Spicy Spaghetti with Beef & Vegetables

While the pictures I took don’t do it justice, this is the perfect pasta recipe to make this summer. Loaded with freshly picked cherry tomatoes from our garden and diced zucchini, you can’t get much healthier than this twist on the traditional spaghetti with bolognese sauce.

Our family likes to eat healthy, buy organic, and cut out as much processed foods as we can. This day and age, our meat is injected with hormones, and our produce is sprayed with insecticide and chemicals; it’s just downright scary.

I used to buy the jarred marinara sauce to make my spaghetti sauce, but the more and more I ate it, it tasted sugary and somewhat “old”. I’ve been making my own meat sauce using The Meat Ball Shop’s classic tomato sauce recipe and I’ll never go back.

This is another great recipe for homemade meat sauce from Taking on Magazines blog, but  it has a bit of heat from the red pepper flakes, and is loaded healthy summer vegetables.

IMG_7541 Spicy Spaghetti with Beef & Vegetables

If Harper could eat adult food, she’d give it two thumbs up! lol. Enjoy!

baby

Spicy Spaghetti with Beef & Vegetables
Prep time:
Cook time:
Total time:
Serves: 6
Source: Ground Beef Cooking 2015
Ingredients
  • 8 ounces dry spaghetti, uncooked
  • 1/2 pound ground lean sirloin beef
  • 1/4 cup chopped onion
  • 1 can (15 oz) tomato sauce
  • 1 Tbsp. red wine vinegar
  • 1 tsp. Italian seasoning
  • 1/2 tsp. granulated sugar
  • 1 clove minced garlic
  • 1/4 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes
  • 1 medium zucchini, thinly sliced (1 med = about 1 cup)
  • 2 medium tomatoes, seeded, chopped (2 med = about 1 cup)
  • 3 Tbsp. chopped fresh parsley
Instructions
  1. Cook pasta according to package directions, omitting salt. Drain; set aside.
  2. Combine meat and onions in medium nonstick skillet. Cook over medium heat 4 to 5 minutes, or until meat is no longer pink; stirring frequently. Drain, if necessary.
  3. Stir in tomato sauce, vinegar, Italian seasoning, sugar, garlic and red pepper. Cook 3-4 minutes, or until heated through, stirring occasionally.
  4. Add pasta and zucchini; mix well. Cook 2-3 minutes, or until heated through, stirring occasionally. Stir in tomatoes and parsley; heat through.

 

Pan-Roasted Tomatoes

pan-roasted tomatoes

I never was a fan of tomatoes growing up. I remember having friends who could eat cherry tomatoes just like they were grapes. Me? No. You’d never catch me eating vegetables, let alone by themselves.

For some reason, my taste buds changed when I went to college. I think it’s because I finally realized that if I ate fried chicken and pizza the rest of my life, I would get fat. Time to bring on the vegetables!!

And that I did. I started actually liking corn on the cob, I discovered my love for mushrooms, bell peppers, broccoli and more. I actually heard that tomatoes are a fruit, but whether its a fruit or vegetable, who cares. I love tomatoes now!!

The great thing about these pan-roasted tomatoes is that they have an Italian twist to them. The flavors of the olive oil combined with rosemary, oregano, salt and pepper mixed in with the cherry tomatoes remind me of the wonderful olive oil dipping sauce at Macaroni Grill. Yum!

Plus, this is probably these easiest side dish you’ll ever make. Simply throw an entire pint of cherry tomatoes in a skillet with 1 teaspoon of olive oil and cook until they start to blister,  3-4 minutes. Then toss in the remaining olive oil and Italian seasonings and you’re done. Simple!!!

Serve with grilled chicken and a side salad and you’ve got a well-rounded meal. Enjoy!

pan-roasted tomatoes
Heat 1 teaspoon olive oil in a skillet and add a pint of cherry tomatoes.
pan-roasted tomatoes
Cook for 3-4 minutes or until tomatoes start to blister.
pan-roasted tomatoes
Add remaining teaspoon of olive oil, salt, pepper, rosemary and oregano.
Pan-Roasted Tomatoes
Prep time:
Cook time:
Total time:
Serves: 4
Ingredients
  • 2 tsp. olive oil, divided
  • 1 pint grape tomatoes
  • 1 tsp. chopped fresh oregano
  • 1/2 tsp. chopped fresh rosemary
  • 1/4 tsp. salt
  • 1/4 tsp. crushed red pepper
Instructions
  1. Heat 1 teaspoon oil in a medium nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add tomatoes; cook 3-4 minutes or until tomatoes begin to blister.
  2. Remove from heat; stir in 1 teaspoon oil and remaining ingredients, tossing gently to combine. Let stand 5 minutes.