Quick Quinoa Spaghetti Sauce

This quick quinoa spaghetti sauce is made with either fresh or canned tomatoes and is meatless, simple, and super adaptable. Since it makes the equivalent of one 28-ounce jar of spaghetti sauce, it’s also our go-to spaghetti sauce base for LOTS of different recipes.

Hello my friends.

Our garden is starting to get to that overwhelming stage where there is more stuff coming out of it than I feel like I can deal with. Every couple of days I pick about a 3 gallon tub full of tomatoes, peppers, zucchini, yellow squash and cucumbers.

And then I have to figure out what to do with it all.

I love it, but it’s a lot of work this time of year.

So this recipe is one of those recipes that came out of the problem of “having to figure out what to do with it all”.

My favorite thing to do with the garden harvest is to use it. And use it right away. Oh I do a lot of canning, but I love finding as many creative ways to use the fresh garden produce in the food we are eating.

Why I love this quinoa spaghetti sauce

I love that this recipe makes use of fresh diced tomatoes (and that’s my favorite way to eat it). But it’s also adaptable so you can use canned diced or crushed tomatoes as well.

I also love that this recipe is meatless but it still uses quinoa. Quinoa is a complete protein so it’s a great meat substitute and we use it all the time. It’s a whole grain and has fiber and all that good stuff for you too.

We make and use this quick quinoa spaghetti sauce in several dishes so it’s become a huge favorite. It’s also delicious just plain and simple served over pasta.

Okay my friends, I’m off to dig out from under my mountainous harvest. Have a great day!

Later alligator.

5 from 1 vote

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Easy Homemade Spaghetti Sauce with Quinoa

This quick quinoa spaghetti sauce is made with either fresh or canned tomatoes and is meatless, simple, and super adaptable. Since it makes the equivalent of one 28-ounce jar of spaghetti sauce, it's also our go-to spaghetti sauce base for LOTS of different recipes.

Course Dinner

Cuisine Italian-inspired

Keyword Sauce

Prep Time 5 minutes

Cook Time 20 minutes

Total Time 25 minutes

Servings 6 Servings

Author Heather @ thecookstreat.com

Ingredients

• 3 ½ to 4 cups (about 28 to 32 ounces) pureed tomatoes see note
• 1 large clove garlic minced
• ½ tablespoon chopped fresh oregano or 3/4 teaspoon dried
• ½ tablespoon chopped fresh basil or 3/4 teaspoon dried
• ½ tablespoon chopped fresh thyme or 3/4 teaspoon dried
• ¼ teaspoon onion powder
• 2 teaspoon brown sugar
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• ¼ teaspoon black pepper
• 1 8-ounce can tomato sauce
• 2 tablespoons tomato paste
• ¼ cup uncooked rinsed red or white quinoa
• salt & pepper to taste

Instructions

1. In a blender, place the tomatoes, minced garlic, oregano, basil, thyme, brown sugar, salt, and black pepper and blend until smooth. 

2. Place blended sauce into a large saucepan and add the tomato sauce, tomato paste and quinoa. Heat to a simmer over medium heat. 

3. Simmer for 15-20 minutes or until quinoa is cooked. You can tell when the quinoa is cooked because it displays a little white thread that curls around it. 

4. Taste and add more salt and pepper, if needed. Serve over hot pasta or use in a recipe that requires a 28-oz. jar of spaghetti sauce.

Recipe Notes

1. I love using fresh garden tomatoes in this recipe when I have them. About 4 ½ to 5 cups of freshly diced tomatoes will yield about 3 ½ to 4 cups of pureed tomatoes. When I don’t have fresh, I use canned tomatoes. Either two 13-ounce cans, a 28-ounce can, or a quart of home-canned crushed or diced tomatoes in this recipe all work great.

2. I’ve made this recipe ahead of time, It will keep in the refrigerator for about a week and up to a month (or more) when frozen.

Recipe Source: Heather @ The Cook’s Treat

All images and text ©The Cook’s Treat

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