Good morning! The weather has been unseasonably warm for us here in Utah, and we are taking full advantage! In fact, I wrote just two weeks ago, “we’re headed out for our last hike of the year”, and then BAM! A 60 degree day (that felt like 70) in mid-November! I just couldn’t let it get away. At first, my kids didn’t want to go. But I’ve been talking about this book Spark, with my running partner that discusses how exercise affects kids brains and literally makes them smarter! Plus, with the diminishing vitamin D and the fresh air, I decided to make them go. And guess, what- they had a blast!
Anyway, onto our newest recipe- Homemade Spaghettios Recipe! Do we need to discuss why this canned meal needs a makeover? Well, it starts with the presence of high fructose corn syrup. That ingredient alone screams: Make a homemade version of me! But it ends with a list too long for us.
Water, Tomato Puree (Water, Tomato Paste), Enriched Macaroni Product with Added Calcium and Vitamin D (Wheat Flour, Calcium Phosphate, Niacin, Ferrous Sulfate, Thiamine Mononitrate, Riboflavin, Folic Acid, Vitamin D) (All Nutrients in Excess of Standard), High Fructose Corn Syrup, Contains Less than 2% of: Salt, Enzyme Modified Cheddar Cheese (Cheddar Cheese (Cultured Milk, Salt, Enzymes, Calcium Chloride], Water, Disodium Phosphate, Enzymes), Flavoring (Natural Flavoring, Vegetable Oil (Corn and/or Canola), Onion Extract, Thyme Oil, Laurel Leaf Oil, Cottonseed Oil), Potassium Chloride, Vegetable Oil (Corn, Cottonseed, Canola, and/or Soybean), Enzyme Modified Butter (Milk), Skim Milk, Paprika Extract, Citric AcidSo, of course, we made our own.
The only “vegetables” in Spaghettios is tomatoes. Even though the label promotes: 1 Full Serving of Vegetables! Our version contains much more! We used:
- 4 carrots
- 1 stalk of celery
- 1 1/2 cups of diced tomatoes
- 1 1/2 cups of o noodles- which was hard to find, until I found out they are called: Anelletti Pasta.
- and a bit of salt to taste.
I cooked the carrots, celery, tomatoes, and salt in a pot until it was all soft enough to blend. It took about 10-15 minutes.
Then, once the veggies are soft, blend in a high powered blender until smooth.
At this point, you can just add your cooked noodles to the sauce, or you can make it thinner. The sauce in real spaghettios is SUPER thin (and sweet). So, I did juice 2 more carrots, and add it back to the sauce to thin it out. But you don’t need to do this. In fact, my kids prefer the thicker sauce. They also prefer the homemade version!! (we did taste testing).
So, avoid the high fructose corn syrup, and the list of 20 ingredients, and make it yourself.. with more vegetables, and more whole foods! Let us know how your kids like it! (full recipe below)
Come back later this week for more kids favorite food makeovers! And check out these other posts for our makeovers of the past:
Homemade Spaghettios – With Extra Veggies
Ingredients
- 3 medium carrot
- 1 stalk celery
- 1 1/2 cup diced tomatoes, canned
- 1 1/2 cup pasta, anelletti
- 1/8 teaspoon salt
- 1/8 teaspoon black pepper, ground
- 1/8 cup Parmesan cheese
Instructions
- Chop carrots and celery.
- Place tomatoes, celery and carrots in a pot and boil for about 10-15 minutes.
- Once veggies are soft, puree in a blender until smooth. Optional: Juice your carrots and celery if you have a juicer to make a sauce that is more runny, similar to spaghettios.
- Boil noodles according to package directions. Combine.
- Season with salt, pepper and parmesan cheese.
Nutrition
www.superhealthykids.com
