Spaghetti with Garden Vegetable Marinara 
Serves 6 • Cooking Time 7 to 8 hours on Low or 4 to 5 hours on High • Slow Cooker Size 4 to 7 Quarts
WHY THIS RECIPE WORKS: For a slow-cooker marinara sauce packed with vegetables and a consistently fresh taste, we turned to canned tomatoes and built a robust sauce that included carrots and zucchini. We started by microwaving the carrots along with traditional aromatics—onion, tomato paste, garlic, oregano, and red pepper flakes—for a deeply flavorful backbone; dried porcini along with a little soy sauce provided welcome meaty depth without adding fat. Getting the texture right was more of a challenge. We found that a combination of crushed tomatoes and canned tomato sauce gave the sauce a perfect chunky texture and heartiness. We finished the sauce by adding the zucchini at the end, as it needed only a quick stint in the slow cooker to completely cook through; otherwise it turned mushy and lackluster during the long Cooking Time. Stirring in the basil right before serving gave this healthy sauce a final punch of garden freshness. See the sidebar that follows the recipe.
1 |
onion, chopped fine |
3 |
carrots, peeled, quartered length-wise, and sliced ¼ inch thick |
¼ |
ounce dried porcini mushrooms, rinsed and minced |
2 |
tablespoons tomato paste |
2 |
tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil |
4 |
garlic cloves, minced |
1 |
tablespoon minced fresh oregano or 1 teaspoon dried |
Pinch red pepper flakes |
|
1 |
(28-ounce) can crushed tomatoes |
1 |
(15-ounce) can tomato sauce |
2 |
tablespoons low-sodium soy sauce |
Salt and pepper |
|
1 |
bay leaf |
1 |
zucchini, quartered lengthwise and sliced ¼ inch thick |
¼ |
cup chopped fresh basil |
1 |
pound whole-wheat spaghetti |
1. Microwave onion, carrots, mushrooms, tomato paste, 1 teaspoon oil, garlic, oregano, and pepper flakes in bowl, stirring occasionally, until vegetables are softened, about 5 minutes; transfer to slow cooker. Stir in tomatoes, tomato sauce, soy sauce, ½ teaspoon salt, and bay leaf. Cover and cook until sauce is deeply flavored, 7 to 8 hours on low or 4 to 5 hours on high.
2. Discard bay leaf. Stir in zucchini, cover, and cook on high until tender, 20 to 30 minutes. Stir in basil and remaining 5 teaspoons oil.
3. Bring 4 quarts water to boil in large pot. Add pasta and 1 tablespoon salt and cook, stirring often, until al dente. Reserve ½ cup cooking water, then drain pasta and return it to pot. Add sauce and toss to combine. Season with salt and pepper to taste and adjust consistency with reserved cooking water as needed. Serve.
Per serving:
Cal 390
Fat 7g
Sat Fat 0.5g
Chol 0mg
Carb 69g
Protein 15g
Fiber 14g
Sodium 1220mg
*To reduce sodium level to 610mg, use no-salt-added tomatoes.