Squash-ed spaghetti bolognaise
- Ready In: 50 minutes
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cooking Time: 30 minutes
- Serves: 4
This is an excellent make-and-freeze recipe, so weeknight meals become more manageable. I know of no better way of ‘hiding’ veggies than in a Bol sauce – somehow mince with a few veggies like pumpkin or zucchini is a match-made-in-heaven.
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 onion, peeled and diced
- 2 cloves garlic, grated
- 1 cup (200 g) red lentils
- 500 g veal and pork mince
- ¼ butternut pumpkin, peeled and grated
- 1 zucchini, grated
- 1½ cups tomato passata
- ½ cup salt-reduced beef stock
- 1 tablespoon dried oregano
- cracked black pepper
- 2 cups dried wholemeal pasta or use zucchini noodles
- TO SERVE:
- grated Parmesan cheese
Nutrition per serve
1 serve bolognaise plus 1 tablespoon Parmesan cheese = 1930 kJ (460 Cals), 37 g protein, 15 g fat (including 4 g saturated fat), 41 g carbohydrate (including 6 g sugars), 8 g fibre, 260 mg sodium.
Directions
- Heat oil in a large heavy-based frying pan over medium heat.
- Add onion and garlic to the pan. Cook, stirring for 1–2 minutes or until onion has softened.
- Add mince to the pan and cook, stirring for 4–5 minutes until it breaks up and is lightly brown. Move the browned mince to the edges of the pan.
- Add pumpkin and zucchini to the pan. Cook, stirring for 3–4 minutes.
- Add the passata, stock, oregano and pepper to the pan. Bring mixture to the boil then allow to boil for 3–4 minutes. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer for 15–20 minutes or until the liquid has reduced and sauce thickened.
- Meanwhile, bring a large pot of water to the boil. Add the pasta and cook for 12–15 minutes or until the pasta is al dente.
Variations
- Instead of the dried oregano, use any Italian herbs of your choice.
- You can use beef mince in place of veal and pork.
- If you have a vegetable spiraliser and want a lower-carb meal, you can use zucchini noodles instead of pasta.
Recipe created by Helena Dowdall. You’ll find more of Helena’s work on her website
