There is something so comforting about a big bowl of pasta. Spaghetti with bolognese sauce is a meal that I would have all the time growing up. It is traditionally made with ground beef, like what I’ve done in a prior post (link here), but today I am sharing a recipe for a vegetarian (actually vegan) version!

This sauce has all the classic flavours of an italian tomato sauce, but it also has a little vegetable action to add some nutrition. As you can see from my picture and the title of this post, I served this bolognese with spaghetti but you could use any pasta you wish, or use this sauce in a lasagna. You can really use it anywhere you would use a regular tomato/meat sauce.

I know this goes against the title, but you could easily omit the veggie ground round and make this a more basic tomato sauce. Another option, if you wanted to add more veggies, you could substitute the veggie ground with chopped zucchini, mushrooms and/or carrots (~2 cups).

Once you have the sauce cooked, you can serve it immediately, or you can pop it in the freezer (once cooled) for like 2 months. Whenever you want pasta, all you have to do is thaw the sauce, heat it up and serve however you like!

Have a good weekend! 🙂

Ingredients:

• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 large onion (~1 cup)
• 1 bell pepper (~1/2 cup)
• 340g veggie ground round (I use Yves brand)
• 1 tsp each: oregano, basil, dried parsley, sugar
• 1/2 tsp each: garlic powder, salt
• 1/4 tsp each: black pepper, chili flakes
• 680mL tomato passata/puree
• 1/2 cup water

Directions:

1. Heat oil in large pot. Add onion and bell pepper. Saute until soft, about 5 minutes.
2. Add veggie ground round, breaking up large chunks. Cook 2 more minutes, until heated through.
3. Add all remaining ingredients to pot. Stir until combined. Bring sauce to a bubble, then cover and reduce heat to low. Simmer 10-15 minutes.
4. Serve over cooked pasta. Enjoy hot!