When we think of spaghetti, most of us think of a filling, fattening, less than healthy meal full of
pasta, rolls with margarine or butter, salad, and maybe steak or chicken on the side.
We can change the recipe a bit, the mindset a lot and enjoy a big bowl of spaghetti and meat
sauce which is nourishing and satisfying. It’s easy to “hide” healthy vegetables and meats in a
marinara sauce. Once I successfully added ground beef heart and routinely add a lot of celery,
onions, mushrooms and kale. The beauty of this sauce is that you cook it, either on the stove or
in the crock pot for many hours and the veges, yes even the celery, melt away and aren’t visible.
I was recently told by a friend that the celery made the sauce more robust.
As for the pasta, you can use your favorite gluten pasta (which is hopefully non-GMO), or a
grain-free, non-GMO OR if you’re watching your carbs, try spaghetti squash.
And as for the bread, if you must have it, how about some cauliflower rice garlic bread sticks?
It’s easy and delicious with no guilt!
Send me an email if you’d like so
me guidance on brands of pasta which I recommend.
Pour a small glass or organic red wine, make a nice salad, add a bread stick and enjoy!
Salivating yet??!
Original Recipe by Mary Williams from a basic version my mom made.
This recipe makes ~ 6 qts, enough to feed a large bunch and put some away in the freezer. You can make in a large stock pot or in a 7-8 qt. crock pot. I prefer using the crock pot because you can start it at your convenience and don’t have to worry about burning.
Ingredients
Note: All of my ingredients are organic. Meat and animal fat is 100# pastured/woodland
1# ground beef
1# ground pork
Ground raw organ meats like liver, kidneys, heart, tongue (optional) - use your judgement on quantity - best to go light on your first batch.
Fat of your choice – lard, bacon fat, coconut oil. (You may add olive oil to the saute but shouldn’t be used to brown meat due to high heat).
2 lg onions
1 bunch celery
4-8 oz frozen kale (your preference)
4-8 oz mushrooms (your preference)
1 lg can plain or fire-roasted tomatoes (chopped or whole which you chop in food processor)
1 small can tomatoes (as above)
3 cans tomato paste
1 rounded Tbsp chopped garlic (I use chopped lacto-fermented garlic-see my recipe for that)
2 rounded Tbsp dried basil
1 rounded Tbsp dried oregano
1 heaping tsp sea salt
1 tsp black pepper
Freshly grated Parmesan cheese for topping
Spaghetti squash or pasta of your choice
Directions
1. Melt generous amount of fat in skillet – preferably a cast iron one.
2. Add beef and pork and brown on high heat. Remove from heat and put in pot/crock pot.
3. Chop onions, kale and mushrooms separately in food processor to a texture of your liking. Add kale and onions to pot.
4. Switch blade to slicer-set on thin and slice entire bunch of celery. Add to pot.
5. Add tomatoes, tomato paste and seasonings to pot.
6. Stir ingredients.
7. Cook (just keep tasting and quit cooking when it pleases your palate-it gets better the longer it cooks):
Crock Pot: Depending on your time frame, you can cook on high for a few hours, then reduce to low. It does well with longer cooking, so no need to set a timer. Total cooking time on low 8-12 hrs but OK 24 hrs.
Stove top: Bring to low boil, then reduce to simmer and cook for 8 hours, stirring occasionally to prevent sticking or burning
NOTE: celery, kale and onions disappear in the sauce so you get the melded flavors with the texture of meat sauce.
8. Add mushrooms later in the cooking cycle so they won’t disappear (unless you’re trying to hide them).
9. About an hour before serving, boil pasta in filtered water with sea salt and some coconut oil (to prevent sticking).
10. If using spaghetti squash, put whole squash in 350-degree oven for 1-1 ½ hrs. Allow to cool for handling, cut in half and remove center with seeds. Scoop the remainder into a sauce pan. Season if desired. Add some sauce now if desired.
11. Drain pasta and return to saucepan (no need to rinse). Add a few scoops of sauce, stir in and allow to sit until served. (Pasta absorbs flavor of sauce and makes for a much tastier dish.)
12. Re-heat pasta or squash just prior to serving.
13. Serve topped with Parmesan if desired.
