Veggie Bolognese Sauce
My Own Edible Garden is in full force which means that we’ve got zucchini and thyme growing like weeds and peppers and carrots on the verge of being ready to pick. Trying to think of the
perfect recipe to utilize this cornucopia of veggies that I can freeze to have in the months to come, I came up with this Veggie Bolognese Sauce.
If you know me, it’s no secret that I’m not into hiding or sneaking veggies in my kids food, rather they are the stars of this naturally sweet sauce for pasta, rice, grilled chicken and more. It’s a great way to get your little ones a wide array of their vitamins because this sauce is something they’ll love to devour!
Veggie Bolognese Sauce (Serves 4)
1 Red Bell Pepper
2 Medium Carrots, peeled and chopped into chunks
2 Small Zucchinis, chopped into chunks
1 Small Onion, chopped into chunks
2 Small Garlic Cloves
1 Tbsp Olive Oil
1 Dried Bay Leaf
1 Tbsp Fresh Thyme or 1/2 Tsp Dried Thyme
1 Tsp Kosher Salt
2 Tbsp Tomato Paste
1 Tsp Sugar
1 14.5 Oz Can Diced Tomatoes, unsalted
1/2 Cup Water
Accompaniments: Parmesan Cheese, grated
1. Place the onion chunks and garlic into a food processor and pulse until finely chopped. Remove and set aside.
2. Add the carrots, zucchini and red bell pepper to the food processor and pulse until chopped into small pieces.
3. Heat 1 tbsp of oil in a large pot over medium heat, add the onions and garlic and sauté for 3 minutes.
4. Add the vegetable mixture and cook for an additional 3 minutes.
3. Mix in the dried thyme, bay leaf, and salt.
5. Add the tomato paste and stir to combine until all of the ingredients are coated.
6. Add the remaining ingredients, stir, simmer, cover and cook for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.
7. Toss with pasta or serve over rice or chicken.
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My 15 month old loves spaghetti sauce & I’ve been having such a hard time getting him to eat his veggies. This sounds like a wonderful recipe that he can get his veggies in on. They will be nice & small & soft and easy for his 4 little teeth to chew on. Thanks! I think I’ll serve it over cut up turkey meatballs. He doesn’t like pasta! Have you ever heard of a kid that doesn’t like pasta? Eek!
My 3 year old daughter doesn’t like pasta either and we are Italian! I am hoping she’ll come around because I make it once a week for dinner
My first weelicious recipe! I made this for dinner tonight and it was delicious! I normally “tweak” recipes to my own preferences, but this was perfect exactly as written!
This looks sensational, i’m going to try it for my little one tomorrow. If only we had a garden like yours!
Thank you.
I have an overabundance of all of these veggies. Looks likee its going to be a veggie bolgnese night tonight.
Hands down the best sauce I have ever made. My 2 year old loved it. We used our zuchinni from the garden and I added a little fresh basil and tarragon to dried tyme since we didn’t grow that herb. Thank u again for this delicious sauce! I am going to mix it in some eggs this am for breakfast. Happy 4th everyone!
Made this yesterday with my 5 year old, and we LOVED it! I threw in a can of white beans, and it was a great way to add in some extra protein. This will be going into the regular rotation. I’m assuming it will freeze well, so I will plan to make a bunch with all the fresh summer veggies so we can enjoy in the colder months.
I made this tonight and it was so good! I do not have a food processor so I grated the carrots. Then I chopped everything else as finely as I could. I also added a few fresh diced tomatoes. Even my picky 9 year old ate it! We poured it over pasta and I told him the sauce was similar to what is on pizza. He now calls it pizza pasta! After finding this site I will be investing in a food processor in the near future!
I made this today for my 9 month old son…left out the salt and sugar. And on a whim, added some salmon to his meal and froze the rest of the sauce. Ate every bite without complains, but then again, he’s at that stage where he opens up for everything.
I knew this recipe was for keeps when my finicky four year old daughter also ate her share without the usual “it’s salty/sauce/spicy/not chicken nuggets!” whining! <3 <3 <3 I'M LOVING IT!
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I made this but I added to it because I was in the mood for a baked pasta. I made the recipe as usual but then I added some pasta sauce, cheese, and whole wheat ziti. Cooked it in the oven until and it was great! Loved all the veggies.