Recipe: Hidden Vegetable Pasta Sauce

Credit to Anna at: https://annasfamilykitchen.com

Half-term Dinner Inspiration, anyone?

A note from Anna: “We all know the benefits of including more vegetables into our diets but with vegetable adverse children or fussy eaters it can be a challenge. Here’s a great recipe to get your family on the way to their 5 (or is it now 7?!) a day. You can play with the mix of vegetables. Frozen spinach, red pepper & aubergine all work well. I’ve made this into a sausage pasta but you could add sliced chicken, prawns or keep it vegetarian. And sometimes simply mixing up the pasta type or shape breaths new life into family meals. I went with Trofie which is made from durum wheat semolina.”

Serves: 4

Prep: 10 minutes
Cooking: 20 minutes
Total: 30 minutes

Difficulty: easy

Ingredients

1 red onion chopped
1 carrot chopped
1 courgette diced
1 leek sliced
2 cloves garlic
2 cans chopped tomatoes
1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
1 tsp dried oregano
Salt and black pepper

12 good quality sausages each cut into 4-5 chunks.

320g dried pasta

If adding sausages, colour them in a pan in a small amount of oil for 10 minutes. Set aside.

If you’re not catering for a vegetarian, you can use the same pan for the sauce.

Add a tbsp oil, the onion & carrot to the pan & soften for a few minutes. Add all the other veg. Colour for a few minutes then add the oregano, 1/2 tsp salt & some black pepper.

Add the chopped tomatoes and oregano. Simmer until your pasta is cooked.

Cook your pasta according to packet instructions and drain.

Blitz the pasta sauce using a hand blender and return the sausages to the pan.

Stir through the pasta and finish with grated Parmesan & fresh herbs if you like.