Meatless Monday: Spaghetti with Veggie Pasta Sauce

Meatless Mondays are become more and more prevalent; in fact I might even dare to say that they are becoming a trend and I LOVE it. The idea of going meatless for a day (or even just for one meal) is a great way to incorporate creative and delicious vegan meals into a diet.

Monday often gets a bad rap because it brings about the end of the weekend and the return to work, school, and responsibility; and getting back to the routine of the week can be stressful. After a long day (even if it’s not a Monday) the last thing I want to do it come home and cook a big meal.

If you are anything like me, you will love this simple yet delicious meal idea to make your Mondays just a little less manic. (:

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Spaghetti with Veggie Pasta Sauce

You Will Need:

Large pot

Saucepan

Spoon

Colander

Ingredients:

1 box of spaghetti noodles

1 jar of spaghetti sauce

2 tablespoons of olive oil

1 teaspoon of garlic salt

1 ¼ cup spinach

¾ cup mushroom slices

*You can use as little or as much spinach and mushrooms as you like, these measurements are reflective of my preferences.

Directions:

In your large pot, cook the pasta per the directions on the box, keeping in mind the number of people and the serving size.

While the pasta is cooking, sauté your mushroom slices in olive oil.

When the mushrooms are almost done, mix in you spinach and sprinkle the garlic salt over the mixture, stir until thoroughly mixed.

Pour in your sauce.

Continue stirring until both the mushrooms and the spinach are fully cooked and the sauce is warm.

Drain your pasta and serve it with you sauce.

Enjoy!

Note: A quick look at the ingredients list on both the pasta box and the jar of sauce will determine if they are vegan; be on the look out for milk or eggs in your noodles and milk or meat bi-products in your sauce. I like to use Mueller’s Thin Spaghetti and Prego Traditional Sauce.

What is a Vegan!?! & A Little Introduction.

It always seems like the first conversation with someone, after they find out you are vegan, always goes the same. First they want to know what a vegan is. Then they want to know why. Finally they want to know how. These conversations usually end with an "I could never live with out cheese" or an "I could totally be vegan, as long as I could still eat chicken". The focus always seems to be on the short list of things that vegans don't eat, instead of the huge variety of foods that we can eat. 

Just to insure that we all start off on the same foot, I want to answer the what, the why, and the how. 

What does it mean to be vegan? 

To put it quite simply, being vegan simply means abstaining from animal products (meat) and their bi-products (milk, eggs, leather, etc..). 

Why do people go vegan?

There are two main reasons why people choose to be vegan:

1. Ethical Veganism

People who are vegan for ethical reasons object to the treatment of animals who are raised for food and other products, therefore they choose to abstain or boycott animal products and bi-products.

2. Veganism for Heath

People who recognize the heath benefits of cutting out animal products and therefore they abstain from animal products and bi-products. 

How do people go vegan?

What this question really means is: What can vegans eat?

When people think about a vegan diet they think about the few thinks that you have to cut out, instead of thinking about the huge variety of fruits, vegetables, grains, nuts, etc... that are available.  

I want to use this blog as a way to show people that eating vegan is easy, fast, convenient, and affordable. Therefore, I plan on posting recipes that are easy to understand with ingredients that would be found in the average household. Cooking doesn’t have to be a challenge, in fact I believe it only has to be as complicated as YOU chose to make it.

To compliment these recipes, I also want to provide my proven methods of label reading. One of the biggest struggles for me personally when I made the switch to a vegetarian diet and then later to a vegan one was figuring out what I could eat. Several years later, I have learned ingredients and I can look at a label and know almost instantly whether or not something is vegan.

I also realize that everyone wants the freedom to go out with their friends and family to a restaurant and be able to sit down and enjoy a meal prepared by someone else; because of this I plan on including a guide to vegan eating out. This will be featured in two parts. The first will include reviews of restaurants both in the Richmond area and national chains that have vegan options. Lastly, it will include a guide to eating out at other restaurants including what questions you should be asking your server to ensure your meal is vegan.

I hope to make this an exciting venture for both of us, whether you are currently making the switch Vegetarianism or Veganism or whether you too are an old pro. Therefore, I welcome your feedback as well as any questions or concerns that you may have.

I’m looking forward to our journey together!

Catherine-Melissa