This is my vegetarian spaghetti sauce recipe in its current form. (Yeah, I keep changing it. I do that.) The can sizes for the tomato products are frustrating because they seem to vary by brand. I’m using this rough size chart for this recipe:
Huge can – this one is the large fat one, usually around 29oz
Medium can – this is the standard soup-can sized can, around 14-15oz
Small can – these are the little ones that you mostly see tomato paste in
Ingredients:
- Crushed tomato – 1 huge can
- Tomato puree – 1 huge can
- Diced tomato – 2 medium cans (get the “petite diced” if you can)
- Tomato sauce – 1 medium can
- Tomato paste – 2 small cans or 1 medium can
- 15oz tub of Ricotta cheese
- 1 package of veggie crumbles (the stuff that replaces ground beef. I like the Morningstar Farms ones, but use what you like best.)
Seasonings—obviously this is what makes or breaks a recipe. Here is what I use, but feel free to play with these to make it your own. Use fresh if you can, but if not dried still tastes good. I never measure when seasoning so these are best estimates (these are if using dry):
- 1 Tbsp rosemary
- 1 Tbsp oregano
- 1 Tbsp minced garlic
- 1 Tbsp thyme
- 1 Tbsp savory
- 1 Tbsp salt
- 2 Tbsp basil
- 1 tsp ground bay leaf
Instructions:
There isn’t much to it. You pour everything into a pot—high sided is best to prevent major splatter cleanup—and heat it up. I usually heat it up on medium until it’s bubbling a lot, then turn it down to low and let it cook for a couple of hours, stirring occasionally. You can save a bit of time if you microwave the crumbles 2-3 minutes first, so they’re not frozen going in.
The ricotta gives it a nice creaminess and gives it that flavor that makes me call it “lasagna-style.” The sauce will look a little speckly because of the texture of ricotta. Don’t worry, it’s supposed to look like that.
You can use this sauce over any kind of pasta. I’ve used it over baked eggplant with good success as well. You can chop your favorite veggies into it to mix it up a little. Enjoy!
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