Spring into Action Part 1 - Speedy Spaghetti Bolognaise

I decided to compile a second series called "Spring into Action", which is all about healthy food that can be on your plate in a matter of minutes! Lets face it, with the nights staying lighter for longer who has the time to stand in the kitchen for hours on end preparing your meals, if you're like me you want to make the most of those lighter nights!

I have scoured the internet for some spring like quotes to get us started and here are a few of my favourites (you can tell I love my gardening!):

• Spring is natures way of saying "lets party!" - Robin Williams
• Despite the forecast - live like its Spring - Lily Pulitzer
• It's Spring! We are so excited we wet our plants - unknown
• In the Spring, at the end of the day, you should smell like dirt - Margaret Attwood (from Bluebeard's Egg)

My first super quick recipe I'm going to share with you is my Speedy Spaghetti No Bolognaise, its a tweak on a previous recipe I posted, but I keep going back to this recipe time and time again when I'm short on time.

Ingredients 
Splash of olive oil 
1 Onion, diced
1 Clove Garlic, crushed
1 Red pepper, diced

200g Soya mince (I used Tesco's own brand)
250g Tomato passata
4 Tsp Mixed herbs
2 Tsp Paprika
1 Tsp Balsamic vinegar
½ Tsp Sugar
½ Tsp Salt
½ Tsp Chilli flakes
2 Tbsp Tomato puree
Grind of black pepper

Method
Boil your kettle and pour the hot water over the spaghetti in a large pan. Turn on the heat and push the spaghetti so it is all under the water. Once it starts simmering give the spaghetti a quick stir. Cook as per packet instructions and drain.

Whilst your spaghetti is cooking make the "No Bolognaise" sauce.
First sauté the onion in the olive oil for 3 minutes, then add the garlic and sauté for a further minute, stirring all the time.

Next add the red pepper and sauté for another 2 minutes adding a splash of water if the vegetables start sticking to the pan.

Add the soya mince to the pan and stir so all ingredients are mixed well. 

Stir in the tomato passata and bring to a simmer, about 3 minutes.

Add the remaining ingredients and stir in, simmer for another 6 minutes or until the vegetables are cooked.

Dish out the spaghetti onto plates and top with the "No Bolognaise" sauce.

Enjoy!

Jasmine x

Specials Board: Spaghetti No-Bolognaise

Spaghetti No-Bolognaise and Vegan Mofo Day 24

For the remainder of Vegan Mofo I'm going to show you what to do with leftovers, starting with the homemade tomato sauce I made for the Two Squash Cannelloni.

Nothing goes to waste in this house! I always use up leftovers, if I'm not eating them for lunch the next day they will be turned into another dish. I think this stems from not having a freezer for 12 years! I had to be inventive with my leftovers but I don't think that's a bad thing.

I've made soup which has turned into a curry sauce or pasta sauce. I've stuffed mushrooms and other vegetables with leftover nut or lentil roasts. I've turned leftover stir fries into pies and stroganoffs into soup! Literally nothing is wasted. If I have condiments that need using up they normally go into something and sometimes it's a great discovery!

My homemade tomato sauce recipe makes 1.4 Litres, and I used 400ml of it in my Two Squash Cannelloni. So what do you do with the rest? You can either freeze it or do what I did and turn the leftovers into something different for dinner. This recipe doesn't use all of the tomato sauce but stay tuned over the next 2 days I'll show you how I used it all up, every last little bit!

Ingredients (Serves 6) 

1 Tbsp Olive oil
1 onion, diced
1 Red pepper, diced
150g Courgette, diced
454g frozen soy mince
2 Tsp Bouillon powder
200ml Water
600ml Homemade tomato sauce
1 Tsp Marmite
2 Tsp Mixed herbs
2 Tbsp Tomato puree
2 Tsp Balsamic vinegar
½ Tsp Sugar
Black pepper, ground

Method
Fry the onion in the olive oil for 5-10 minutes, until the onion starts to brown, add the red pepper and saute for another 3 minutes.

Add the chopped courgette and saute for another 2 minutes, before adding the frozen soy mince. Stir to combine everything.

Sprinkle over the vegetable bouillon powder and pour in the water. Give everything a good mix again, bring to a simmer and cook for another 5 minutes.

Add the tomato sauce, marmite, mixed herbs and give everything another stir to combine all the ingredients. Simmer for 5 minutes

Add the tomato puree, balsamic vinegar, sugar and black pepper and continue to simmer for another 5 minutes. 

Serve with spaghetti. I halved the no-bolognaise, saving half for another leftovers meal and we ate two large portions and still had a large portion leftover. Stay tuned to see what happened to the leftovers.

Spaghetti No Bolognaise

I was tempted to go shopping but as we’re living on a very tight budget at the moment whilst we pay off our credit card (don’t ask!) I thought; lets be inventive and use what we have remaining in the cupboards! Now, I have a system for food - kept in the kitchen cupboards are what we buy at our fortnightly shop. In the garage are a couple of cupboards, which act as my storeroom, these are filled with food with a long shelf life that have been on offer and/or we use regularly. For instance tinned tomatoes, Nori Tofu, pasta etc . . . . .

After looking in the cupboard to see what I had to work with it was fairly easy to come up with an idea. Spaghetti no bolognaise.

Sauce ingredients                                                 Bolognaise ingredients

(Serves 4)                                                                 (Serves 2)

Olive oil                                                                     450g reconstituted soya mince

1 onion                                                                      1 onion 

2 cloves garlic - crushed                                          ½ portion tomato sauce

1-2 tin tomatoes (you can puree if desired)       

4 tsp mixed herbs

2 tsp paprika

1 tsp red wine vinegar

1 tsp vegetable bouillon powder

 ½ tsp sugar

½ tsp salt (optional)

 ½ tsp chilli flakes

½ glass red wine

2 tbsp tomato puree

Method

Follow the packet instructions to make the soya mince, but also add ½ tsp of dried cumin, coriander, paprika and garlic/onion powder. Too make the sauce, fry the onions in the oil until translucent and add the crushed garlic, fry for 2 more minutes. Add the tomatoes/passata and stir. Add the paprika, mixed herbs, sugar, salt, red wine vinegar, red wine and chilli flakes and bring to a boil. Turn the heat down and simmer until the sauce has reduced and is a little thicker. Add the tomato puree and keep on a simmer until needed. Sauce should become really glossy and thick.

Meanwhile fry the onion in a little olive oil and when the onion is soft, around 5 minutes add the soya mince and stir to combine. Add the sauce and stir, keep on a low simmer for 5-10 minutes, to cook through. Serve with spaghetti or pasta of your choice.