Healthy comfort food! My take on Spaghetti Bolognese

Spaghetti bolognese is quite possibly one of my favourite foods in the World! But more for the meaty rich sauce than for the pasta!

I gave up pasta in 2009 when I was forced to follow an anti inflammatory diet as a result of having issues with my digestion and being diagnosed with PCOS, IBS & Candida.

Initially I was only meant to cut out processed foods, gluten, dairy and sugar until my body healed but it made me feel so good that I never looked back and have been eating this way ever since.

I can't say there's anything I miss from my old way of eating... Once you discover how amazing your body is designed to feel when you give it the right fuel, it's hard to even consider going back to what you were doing before.

My energy levels are much higher and I no longer crash mid morning because of a drop in blood sugar levels. I'm no longer thinking of food all the time and don't have any cravings for sugar or snacks anymore. The bloating I had around my belly has vanished and I feel a million times lighter than I did before. I also no longer get "hangry" which is a blessing for the people around me! Haha!

Of course these changes didn't happen overnight but I already started feeling different within a week of being really consistent with my new way of eating. 

The best part is that it's been 14 years now and I find it truly easy, enjoyable & effortless to sustain. In fact, even if you paid me a lot of money, I wouldn't want to go back to eating bread, pasta & breakfast cereal like I did before!

I think the main reason it's become so easy & enjoyable for me to eat healthy is that I've spent a considerable time over the past 14 years in the kitchen, recreating all the things I love the most but making them anti-inflammatory!

Spaghetti bolognese is one of them :)

I replaced the spaghetti with zucchini noodles (also known as Zoodles or Courgetti). In some countries (Belgium, US, UK & France) you can buy them ready made at the store or you can simply cut zucchini into thin slices or use a spiralizer like I do in Costa Rica.

Once you start making them, you'll never stop! High in fiber and antioxidants, zucchini ARE a real food, in fact they're a veggie, and are therefore much easier to digest and not inflammatory like pasta that's processed and full of empty calories. 

As for the bolognese sauce, I've "healthified" it by adding vegetables that are high in antioxidants like mushrooms and carrots. I'm not a big beef eater but every once in a while, I'll crave some and I'll then buy grass-fed as it's higher in vitamins, in omega 3 fats and lower in monounsaturated fats (the bad fat) compared to its grain fed counterpart. If you're vegan you can replace the beef with chickpeas or tempeh. 

Here's what you'll need for the bolognese sauce:

Serves 2 hungry people (my portions tend to be big so adapt quantities to your hunger and save some for the next day!)

1 onion (red or regular)

2 tablespoons of red pesto or 1/2 cup of sun-dried tomatoes

250-300g of ground beef (grass-fed is highly recommended)

1 tablespoon of tomato paste

1 jar of chopped tomatoes

2 chopped carrots

2 cups of sliced mushrooms 

Extra virgin olive oil

1/2 cup of organic vegetable stock

Fresh basil

Optional: Parmesan cheese 

You'll also need a zucchini or pre cut zoodles/courgetti! (1 is enough)

How to prepare:

Brown the onion in a pan with olive oil on low to medium temperature*

Add the vegetable stock then the beef and mix breaking up the beef

Add the mushrooms, carrots, tomato paste & chopped tomatoes. Mix well and let everything simmer until the sauce is thick.

Add the sun-dried tomatoes or tomato paste and some chopped fresh basil and mix everything together.

In a separate pan, heat the olive oil on low to medium and add the spiralled zucchini 

Add a pinch of salt and let the zoodles heat up without getting soggy! The key is to remove them from the heat while they're still a little crunchy to keep them "al dente" :)

Remove any liquid from the pan and divide the zoodles on 2 plates. Top with the bolognese sauce and optional drizzle of Parmesan cheese!

Enjoy & save the leftover sauce for a rainy day as it will make a delicious topping to quinoa or a sweet jacket potato :)

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 *Extra virgin olive oil is ok to cook with as long as you keep temperatures below 200C. You can read more about this here.