Healthy Homemade Spaghetti O's- I pinned it, then tried it

I pinned this recipe, then I tried it. First things first, because I don't like to set people up for disappointment-

This doesn't really taste like the canned stuff

This may or may not be good news to you. It is just like what you'd think a homemade version of this might be though. It's a silky blended sauce with pasta dotted through (shells since you can't find O's), eaten with a spoon, hot and soul-filling. Parmesan cheese on top is the perfect topper.



Not only is this a homemade version of a canned product, it's also really healthy! I was pleasantly surprised by this. The sauce is pureed roasted tomatoes, carrots, onion, two whole heads of garlic and vegetable stock. It's a little bit of prep but doesn't take long and it's well worth it. Since it's summer,  I found beautiful tomatoes to use for this, but since roasting improves the flavor, you can use winter tomatoes as well. I might make a batch or two while the tomatoes are at peak and freeze the sauce for the fall months for a quick dinner.



Homemade Spaghetti O's
adapted from Fat Girl Trapped in A Skinny Body
serves 6

• 3 lbs roma tomatoes, sliced into 1/2 thick slices
• 1/2 lb carrots, chopped (you don’t have to peel them, unless you want to)
• 1 yellow onion, chopped
• 2 heads garlic, cloves separated (but not peeled)
• 3 cups vegetable stock (or chicken stock for non-vegetarian/vegan)
• salt and pepper to taste (I used about 1 1/2 tsp salt, and 1/2 tsp pepper)
• 1 lb whole wheat pasta noodles (shell, elbow, alphabet, or O’s)

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

On 2 baking sheets lined with either parchment paper or a silpat mat (optional), lay the sliced tomatoes, chopped carrots and chopped onions in a single layer. Drizzle with a little olive oil and sprinkle with salt. Add the garlic cloves on top (Unpeeled. The peel comes off really easily after they roast)

Bake the vegetables for about 35 minutes, until the tomatoes are wrinkling and the onions and carrots start to get brown on the edges.

Peel the garlic, toss the skins. Transfer vegetables and garlic to a crockpot (or large pot on the stove). Add the vegetable stock and salt and pepper.

Crockpot method: cook on low for 6 hours or on high for 3 hours.

Stovetop: bring to a boil, then simmer over low/medium heat for about an hour.

Transfer veggies and stock to a blender or food processor and puree until really smooth. You might have to do this in 2 stages because it’s a large amount.

Transfer pureed veggies back into either the crockpot or stovetop. Allow to simmer over a very low heat, just to keep it warm while the noodles cook.

Cook the noddles until al dente. Drain noodles and dump into the tomato sauce.

Scoop into bowls and enjoy!

Not that it needs it, but if you wanted, you could stir in a bit of butter and cream to the sauce for more luxuriousness. It really wouldn't be spaghetti O's then, but who would care?