My go to meal for a quick and easy combination is spaghetti. It’s cheap, it’s hearty, it’s nutritious (if done right) and it tastes good. I used to cook whole wheat noodles and top them with a skosh of butter and 3 pound of Parmesan cheese. I was never the biggest fan of marinara sauce, but due to the fact that my diet is completely vegan right now it knew it was time to give marinara another shot.
Asking me to give up spaghetti would be like asking cookie monster to give up cookies, it wouldn’t be pretty. Marinara sauce in a jar is too salty for me, and a bit on the pricey side (frugal alert, frugal alert.) With that said, I have been buying cans of tomato chunks and seasoning them myself.
There is something rewarding about adding your own crushed bugs to tomatoes. The can of plum tomatoes cost me less than $2 and the spices are a combination of what’s already on deck in the cubbord. The sauce tasted great, but no spag feast is complete without the proper vegetable additions. There is also a certain order in which toppings should be added. Vegetables first: Spinach and carrots.
Whole wheat spag next.
Homemade sauce third.
Vegan sausage last.
Mixed up, it’s as if order was never an issue..but it most definitely is.
If all else fails, just make some vegan nachos.
Gosh my life as a foodie is rough.
Q: Do you ever make your own spiced spag sauce?
One of my new favorite things is to take grape tomatoes, slice in half and mix them with olive oil, black peppers, seasonings and cheese… and let it simmer on the stove until the grape tomatoes lose their form and turn into chunky sauce. Delicious!!
My goodness, this sounds amazing.
I totally agree with you – spaghetti is the BEST!
I loved spaghetti. ESPECIALLY cold spaghetti. oh man I used to eat cold pasta salad all the time.. oh your post brings back warm delicious memories! and yes making your own spag sauce is WAY better
I was more excited for leftover (cold) spaghetti the next day at work than I was for the first round of it. I ate that spag at work so cold and so fast you would have thought I hadn’t eaten for days. It was magical.
Spaghetti… oh man what a meal, and filled with memories for me! It’s the meal my gram always makes (with her famous sauce of course) and it’s something I am just so in love with! Plus left over spaghetti sauce used for dipping bread into… oh lord, tasty tasty!
I’d be ALL OVER that pasta bowl! I’m not sure there’s anything quite as satisfying as slurping up noodles ‘n’ sauce.
Dang mamasita, all of this noodle lovin is makin me crave some olive garden! I need to make some spaghetti this week fo sho!
Yummm! I love making my own because you get to put whatever spices you’d like!
looks delish! homemade sauce is the only way to go..i’m a fan of generous olive oil, some balsamic, and lots of variations of tomatoes. and basil. angel hair is my favorite. yumm city.
Ohh yesssss…this combination sounds so good!
Yeah man, home made spaghetti sauce is my go-to creation for using up fridge scraps
Sneak in some veggies for the boys! Also old (crap) red wine is great to make a really rich, hearty sauce (the alcohol cooks off, it’s just for the flavour). Have you tried quinoa spaghetti? I just discovered it, it’s awesome 
Yay, glad you’re still rocking (and loving!) the vegan eats!
Hell to the yes I am lovin the vegan eats still!! It’s been so much fun. Good call on the wine addition! I am googling quinoa spag riggghhtt meow!
nom nom nom! Your food specific posts always surprise me because I expect to get bored one day… I mean, how many interesting things can a person say about food? But with each post, I find myself in absolute stitches of laughter and hunger! Very compelling blog writer you are, my friend! I do not make my own sauce – but I buy the most expensive vegan low sugar low salt with mushroom and eggplant version that I can find at the store.
And I dip raw tofu into it! nom nom nom. 
You are too sweet of a person I tell ya. Thank you for the nice words. Your spag sauce sounds perfect for a mushroom lover. My Manfriend would love it.
pasta is definitely our go-to meal during the week!
i love marinara sauce! i put it on my salads a lot too
Yum!
I just love these sauces. Really like you I can add it to anything. Those Nachos look good:)
just nominated you for an award!
Haha, so true about the order and mixing things up. I do that too but I get so frustrated when I try to mix things and everything falls everywhere
Your sauce looks fantastic! 
Since my mother is italian, and Pirate enjoys gardening aka growing 834958 tomatoes- we make our own sauce. I do not know the secret to this Pirate Process, but it always turns out super tasty and fresh. My mother is a pro at it. I need to learn so then I can use my tomato sauce making skills to impress others, and by others I mean you. And a sexy man. And then I would spoon-feed it to both of you, but on separate occasions. I only have one spoon.
Ah yes, your spoon. I have read about said spoon on the lovely blog of yours and it really is quite an amazing spoon. I will wait my turn should I be chosen last for spoon feeding. Such a privilege is worth the wait.
Mix it all about and WHAT DO YOU GET… yumminess in the MOUTH! — I hope you read that with a singing tone!!!
Leaving with an italian = no can sauce ever! Which I think is awesome because we use all fresh fruits and veggies. Who even needs the pasta?
Who am I kidding. NEED the pasta. Looks delicious no matter how it’s done!
Mmm… yum! S’ghetti is one of my absolutely favorite foods! Love it! This looks so delicious!
Looks super yummy!
I don’t make spag sauce…but Joe does. It’s good, so I let him have that job….
I totally buy a jar of pasta sauce and then “beef” it up with canned tomatoes and all that jazz. So delicious!!
I love making my own sauce! Something about stirring a big put of sauce is relaxing to me. I usually make a big batch and freeze the rest. In the summer when it is too hot to have the stove top going to make it in the slow cooker
Um. YUM. That is all.
LOVE spaghetti! And Brittany! How do i get a hold of that vegan sausage?? Also, could I email ya about veganism and stuff??
You’re awesome and I love your expertise in this area! Oh and vegan nachos?? Please tell me how to make that!
OF COURSE you can email me!! Send me a message and I’ll share any info I’ve got stored in my noggin! This vegan sausage is made by a company called Field Roast. They are AMAZING! I am not a big fan of soy based products (basically all the “fake meats” on the market) so when I found this stuff I died. It’s so tasty and the protein/fiber stats are unbelievable.
The packaging says vegetarian on it as well as vegan, but after reading the ingredients I have confirmed it is indeed vegan. Check out their website to see if there is a store near you that sells them. I buy mine at Costco because I get a 12 pack so it’s about $5 cheaper. They are a little pricey so it’s definitely not an everyday edible for me!
http://www.fieldroast.com/
Oh gosh this meal looks amazing- spaghetti in tomato sauce is my ultimate comfort meal..I feel better just lookinga at your photo haha! I way prefer making homemade sauce over the jarred stuff! As easy as opening a jar of the latter is, I can hardly complain about the difficulty of making my own sauce! However I won’t lie, I HATE the part of cutting up the onions and garlic
!
I make my own sauce all the time. I agree that it just tastes SO much better, but maybe thats because I actually have to MAKE it instead of just open a jar
That pasta looks amazing! I don’t think I’ve ever made my own sauce but it definitely looks better than anything out of a jar thats for sure ;D
Hey girl – you all set for the Potluck? Email me if you have questions
!
Oh my lanta that pasta looks DIVINE. I would love to try going veg/vegan but this girl loves her meat… =/
All of this food looks VERY good. I need a very good homemade spaghetti sauce recipe because my husband is not feeling my store bought jar sauce.
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