Sweet & Spicy Vegetarian Spaghetti Sauce

Rock your pasta night with this sweet & spicy homemade vegetarian spaghetti sauce!

Normally, I’m really on top of meal planning each week – I list out the dinners for each night, make my grocery shopping list based on that, and try to do a little advanced prep on the weekends.  It helps me stay organized and also helps me stick to my grocery budget.

The past few weeks though, between traveling and work, I’ve fallen off track a bit with meal planning.

Despite that, I still try to stay track with healthy eating.  I always have some back-up options that just require a few ingredients – like rice and beans (instant brown rice + tomatoes & green chiles +  black beans + avocado) or salads (topped with chicken or beans, and whatever other veggies/fruits happen to be laying around).

And I’ve become pretty good at looking in the fridge/freezer and figuring out something to make with whatever is in there.  It’s like I’m on Chopped in my own kitchen, I just don’t win anything at the end – except for a happy belly, of course.

Last night, I didn’t plan anything in particular, but looked on my counter and saw some ripe juicy tomatoes from my last CSA pickup.  I knew I had some whole wheat pasta in the cabinet, so it was a perfect opportunity to make some homemade vegetarian spaghetti sauce.

I developed this sauce recipe a while back and I really enjoy it.  It’s not perfectly traditional, but (I think) it’s really good.  It’s a little sweet (thanks to the carrots that help cut the acidity of the tomatoes) and a little spicy (thanks to the crushed red pepper), with a nice depth of flavor (helped by the red wine).

Since you’re making it at home, you avoid a lot of the additives and added sugar that’s often found in some store-bought varieties.  I know homemade spaghetti sauce is a lot more work though, so if you have the ingredients, consider making a double batch that way you can freeze some for another day.  {If I had more tomatoes yesterday, I definitely would have.}

The sauce is vegetarian, and is free of common allergens like dairy, soy, and eggs.  It’s also gluten-free.  And it can be categorized as vegan – although you might want to double check the wine as some wines are processed using animal filtering agents.  The fact that it meets all these needs is great for preparing meals when you have to watch out for family or friends with different dietary limitations!

Of course, if you’re not vegetarian, you can add some ground meat or sauteed chicken to the sauce too.  Completely up to you.

Once the vegetarian spaghetti sauce is done, you can use it in a variety of ways (both vegetarian and non-vegetarian):

• Make your own sourdough pasta – delicious with this sweet and spicy sauce!
• Toss with store-bought whole-wheat or gluten-free pasta
• Serve over meatballs (either solo or on a sub)
• Serve over spaghetti squash
• Use on eggplant or chicken parm
• Use as a dip for “pizza grilled cheese” (make a grilled cheese with mozzarella cheese, then dip it in the sauce – my favorite!)

Manga!

Sweet & Spicy Vegetarian Spaghetti Sauce

Snacking in Sneakers

This homemade vegetarian spaghetti sauce isn't perfectly traditional, but it's really (really) good. It's a little sweet and a little spicy with a nice depth of flavor!

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Prep Time 15 minutes mins

Cook Time 45 minutes mins

Total Time 1 hour hr

Course Main Course

Cuisine Italian

Servings 4

Calories 125 kcal

Ingredients

  

1x2x3x

Ingredients:

• 4 large tomatoes (or 6 medium tomatoes)
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 1/2 red onion, diced
• 1 stalk celery, diced
• 1 carrot, diced
• 3-4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/4 cup red wine
• 1 bay leaf
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp black pepper
• 2 tsp italian seasoning
• 1/8-1/4 tsp crushed red pepper (optional - season to taste)

Instructions

 

Directions:

• To peel tomatoes: Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Cut an x into the bottom of the tomatoes. Drop into the pot of boiling water for about 20-30 seconds, then remove and place in an ice bath. The skin should now peel off easily.
• Remove the hard part near the top of the tomato. I usually cut them into quarters to use.  Set aside for now.
• Heat oil in a large pot (tip – use the same one from above; just dump the water out). Add onion, celery, carrot, and garlic and sauté for 5 minutes.  Deglaze the pot with red wine.
• Add tomatoes, bay leaf, salt, pepper, Italian seasoning, and crushed red pepper.  Simmer, covered, for 45-60 minutes, then puree with an immersion blender. Enjoy!

Notes

Nutrition analysis (approximate assuming 4 large servings):

125 calories, 7 g fat, 320 mg sodium, 12 g carbohydrate, 3 g fiber, 2 g protein
Vitamin A: 82%; Vitamin C: 44%; Calcium: 4%; Iron: 4%; Potassium: 16%

Nutrition

Calories: 125kcal

Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!

Share with me:  Do you ever make your own homemade vegetarian spaghetti sauce?  Do you prefer a traditional style sauce or do you mix it up with other veggies and spices?

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Chrissy Carroll

Chrissy Carroll is a Registered Dietitian and USAT Level I Triathlon Coach. She specializes in sharing nutrition and fitness tips, as well as recipes, for runners, triathletes, and active women.Chrissy holds a Bachelor's Degree in Nutrition, a Masters Degree in Public Health, and is also an ACSM Certified Personal Trainer.

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