One of my favorite foods in the world is spaghetti with meat sauce – always has been, always will be. I thought when I went Vegan I would never be able to have this again – but THANKFULLY I was wrong! I made my own recipe, it’s simple so I can make a bunch of it on Sunday, freeze it, and eat it throughout the week. This is my very easy recipe for Vegan “meat” sauce. Enjoy!

Ingredients:

• 1 T EVOO
• 1 1/2 T minced garlic
• 1 package soy crumble “meat” substitute (I use Trader Joe’s, it has less sodium)
• 2-18 ounce jars of your favorite marinara sauce
• 1 medium spanish onion chopped (I use spanish onions because they are mild, but you can use whatever you have on hand)
• 2 1/2 cups of chopped up mushrooms (I LOVE Mushrooms – feel free to cut down on this if you want less)
• 1 t garlic powder
• Fresh ground chili pepper
• Fresh ground black pepper
• Kosher salt
• 1 T Italian seasoning

Directions:

• In a large sauce pan, heat olive oil until warm
• Add in garlic until it just begins to sizzle
• Add in chopped up onion and cook until translucent
• Once onion is completely cooked, add in the soy substitute, crumbling it up with the onion/garlic so it forms a “loose meat” type consistency.
• I cook my soy product until it is very well done – cook this as long as you feel comfortable, seasoning it as you cook it with 1 teaspoon of italian seasoning, some salt, pepper and chili pepper.
• Once the meat is cooked – add in the mushrooms and allow to cook down (usually about 5 min)
• Reduce heat and add in your marinara sauce
• Add in the remaining Italian seasoning, and the garlic powder along with salt/pepper/chili pepper to taste.
• Cover and let simmer for 30 minutes (the longer you can simmer it the better – it just gets better as you go).
• Cook your favorite pasta and top with vegan parm substitute!

Note: if you are trying not to eat a ton of carbs, another fav of mine is to put this over Spaghetti Squash – DELICIOUS!