Recipe: Fresh Homemade Tomato Sauce

Now that I am a stay-at-home mom, I have made a commitment to myself and my family to remove some of the processed and convenience foods we eat. Most of our meals are homemade, but I wanted to make them with healthier ingredients. Getting a picky family on board can be a challenge in itself, so I wanted to get them as excited for eating it as I was preparing it. I have already gotten Brandon to eat homemade chicken nuggets (I make a huge batch and freeze) and "real" mac and cheese (elbows and grated cheddar jack cheese). He now asks for these instead of the pre-made kind. 

I always had dreams of having my own garden and growing the fruits and veggies my family enjoyed. I wanted to grow tomatoes and can them for the long winter months. Someday, I may be able to do that, but in an apartment setting, it's pretty difficult. So for now, I will have to settle for fruits and veggies from my local farmers market. 

Italians love their pasta and gravy and my family is no exception. At least one meal a week, usually Sunday, consists of pasta and gravy, yes, it's gravy. With tummy troubles in the family, I was inspired to make this meal lighter so we could all enjoy it and not feel awful after. 

My husband and son loved it! I paired it with some veggie pasta. It was boxed pasta, but one step at a time. Lol.

What You'll Need:

Extra virgin olive oil

3-4 garlic cloves

1 small onion

3 beef steak tomatoes

5-6 basil leaves

Salt and pepper

Oregano

Sauté garlic in extra virgin olive oil until fragrant

Add chopped onion and sauté until onions are soft

Grate tomatoes

I grate them until it becomes too difficult and I chop the rest.

Add spices and basil leaves. Simmer.

Add to your favorite pasta. 

I use veggie pasta to sneak in a few extra servings of veggies. 

Shhhh...

A Meatless Burger? Is That Even a Burger?

I'll be honest, I love meat. And one of my favorites is a big, juicy, grilled burger...with all the fixin's. Mmmm, burger. I'm salivating at the thought. But in an effort to change our diet and consume less red meat, I decided to give Portobello burgers a shot. I had watched a segment of Rachel Ray and she made this meatless wonder. It looked really good. I finally tried my hand at making it on my own while trying to pack in as much nutrition and taste as I could. I really enjoyed them, my hubby on the other hand could not get past the texture. He was waiting for that "meat" and it wasn't there. I am, however, extremely thankful that he was on board enough to give it a try.

What You'll Need:

• Portobello mushrooms (remove stem, rinse cap and lay on paper towel to dry)
  
• Whole grain rolls (I used Arnold's 100% whole grain sandwich thins)
• Roasted red peppers
• Pesto spread
• Sliced mozzarella
• Sea salt and fresh ground pepper

Coat a rimmed baking sheet with cooking spray and arrange portobellas bottom up. Brush on extra virgin olive oil and season with sea salt and fresh ground pepper. Bake at 350 until softened but still firm in the center.



Spread each side of the sandwich thin with the pesto spread and arrange the roasted red peppers.

When portobellas are done, cover with mozzarella and let cheese melt.

Put top of roll on and enjoy. I served mine with an alternative to french fries...sweet potato fries. This time they didn't come out quite as crispy as I would have liked, but we will give it another try.

I truly did enjoy my meatless burger and my french fryless french fries. I felt good about the healthy choices I made. But it will ever take the place of a good grilled burger

 

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