Pasta sauce that's healthy?

ashley516

Tomorrow night I'm making some rainbow three cheese tortellini that I have. I'm just wondering what a good/HEALTHY/low cal sauce is to put on it? I read something about olive oil but that doesn't sound like it'd be good?

jwintonyk

1 can diced tomatos
1 can tomato soup (I know it sounds weird)
Whichever fresh herbs you like in your sauce (basil, thyme, oregano, etc)
Fresh cracked pepper and Kosher salt
1 tablespoon or so of brown sugar

Simmer everything together and you're GTG...it's pretty low cal, easy to make and you know exactly what you've put into it...

morganadk2_deleted

Tomato Sauce
So here is a tomato sauce that works great for a pizza sauce, but equally well for a pasta sauce, or even as a soup base! Nutritional info is given for pizza sauce, but for a pasta it would serve 4 people. Works to freeze easily. The whole thing as 1 serving is only 100 calories.

Tomato Sauce
Serves: 16 (as a pizza sauce)

400 g tinned tomatoes (1 tin)
200 ml water
2 cloves garlic
2 g thyme
2 g oregano
1 pinch salt
1 cube vegetable stock
1 tablet of sweetener

Put everything except the stock cube into a blender.
Boil the sauce and add the stock cube. Continue to boil until the sauce is the desired thickness.
6 calories per serving, 0.1g F, 0g SF, 1.4g C, 0.7g S, 0.4g Fb, 0.3g P

stephm112

1 can of chopped tomatoes
any veg you have (broccoli, celery, carrots anything)
onions and garlic
cook the whole lot then blitz it. it's really rich and tastes soooo good

kaetra

I get the Prego Heart Smart. It's low cal and lower sodium. And it's easy.

I usually sautee a whole bunch of sliced fresh mushrooms in the pan first with some cooking spray and a tiny bit of water, then add the sauce and let it simmer a bit.

I wonder if you're looking for a non-tomato based sauce for your tortellini though...

Sue_Smiles

2 cans (14.5 oz) low-sodium diced tomatoes
1 6oz can tomato paste
mushrooms (canned or fresh)
meat if you want (about 8 oz very lean)
onion
garlic
basil
oregano
bay leaf
black pepper
crushed red pepper flakes

6 servings, around 170 calories

JoDeeD

We do about the same as above except we don't measure. Instead of the sugar (which helps take the acid taste out of tomatoes) we add finely minced carrots from our food processor. Adds a little bit of nutrition too. Use low or no sodium tomatoes when ever possible (if you have time blanche fresh tomatoes instead of using canned). Add your own fresh herbs if possible. I am thinking about using ground turkey when all of my ground beef is gone.

neanderthin

Tomorrow night I'm making some rainbow three cheese tortellini that I have. I'm just wondering what a good/HEALTHY/low cal sauce is to put on it? I read something about olive oil but that doesn't sound like it'd be good?

Olive oil would definitely work. I would probably saute some garlic and maybe a herb like basil or margoram and finish with a knob of butter and some decent balsamic.......and of course any type of tomato sauce works very well with cheese.

fiberartist219

Almost all pasta sauce that comes in a jar has oil in it.

I like to make my sauce without oil. I know some true Italians that might defend using oil in the pasta sauce, but neither my husband nor I miss having oil in our sauce.

I just use tomato sauce, and I toss some garlic, oregano and basil into it.

Some might say straight tomato sauce is acidic, but honestly, adding sweetener or oil doesn't make it any less acidic. It just makes you taste the acid less. It will still tear up your insides in the same way if you have heartburn, an ulcer, or some other condition that makes you sensitive to acid.

TeaBea

Tomato sauce in a jar in not necessarily unhealthy. Things to compare: sodium content, sugar content, and fat content. Many sauces have high sodium, Prego is one brand that is very high in sugar (last time I checked) and many brands are low fat.

I wouldn't worry about olive oil - it's a good for you type of fat.

jfinnivan

I've been making a ground turkey-based meat sauce lately. I use one of the big jars of Prego heart smart sauce. First, saute 1.5 pounds of ground turkey in some olive oil in a pot, making sure the meat is chopped into small pieces. When it's cooked through, add the sauce and cook for several hours. You can add herbs or red wine if you like. The flavor really develops during the many hours of cooking. The longer you cook it, the richer the flavor becomes.
I've made home-made sauce for years, so I did this with some reluctance. It's not bad, though. It's about 100 calories per half cup serving.

mommamuscles

I like the classico brand (spicy tomato pesto or tomato and basil). Also Costco has a marinara sauce that is only 40 calories for 1/2 c. and no sugar!!!!
I usually make my own when I have time.
I saute onion, red and yellow peppers and garlic in a little bit of olive oil. Add in italian seasoning, crushed red pepper and 1 can of crushed tomatoes, 1 cup of beef stock.
Sometimes I add ground turkey to it. Simple and delicious. I've also just thrown everything in the crockpot and let it go.

philOHIO

Classico Tomato-Basil is pretty good out of the jar... one of the lowest fat and sugar quantities of any brand name sauce

jsuaccounting

I learned this from "The Mediteranean Prescription"
Just simmer several tablespoons of olive oil in a large can of crushed tommatoes for 15 minutes.
Simple but pretty good. No added sugar and healthy fat.
I also like to add some italian spices.