Ah, red sauce and pasta. The weeknight fallback of those with no time to cook. It’s an easy option that usually makes everyone in the family a happy camper. But your average jarred sauce atop white pasta is often compared nutritionally to ketchup on white bread. When a sauce is as easy to make as this one, there’s no reason not to have some on hand. This recipe makes about 8 to 10 servings, so it’s simple to make a big pot and then freeze in single serving containers to make those rushed dinners a snap.

The added vegetables are a great source of vitamin C and the tomato base offers up a healthy dose of the much-coveted lycopene. The sauce is very low-fat with only a bit of olive oil used at the beginning to sauté the onion and garlic.

Paired with a whole wheat pasta and a multi-grain roll, this hearty sauce far outshines the jarred variety found at the supermarket.

Vegetarian Bolognese Sauce

3 cloves garlic, chopped
1 sweet onion, medium dice
1 pkg prepared TVP (equal to 1.5 pounds ground meat)

1/2 each: red, green yellow and orange bell pepper, diced
1/2 medium zucchini, sliced and quartered
3 cups sliced mushrooms

1 16oz can crushed tomatoes
2 tsp dried basil
2 tsp dried oregano
2 bay leaves
salt and pepper to taste

In a large pot, sweat garlic and onion in olive oil until soft. Add TVP and stir well. Add crushed tomatoes, salt and pepper, and spices. Stir well and add vegetables, all at once.

Allow to simmer over medium heat, stirring every few minutes or so to prevent burning until the vegetables have softened and the sauce is more liquidy (it will look very dry at first, but as the mushrooms release their liquid, the sauce will loosen up). Adjust seasonings to taste and allow to simmer on low for about half an hour.

Remove bay leaves and serve over whole grain pasta. Makes approximately 8 - 10 servings.

This post originally appeared on FitFare, part of the WellFed Network.