Through my long journey in the health and wellness fields, I've acquired certain, shall we say, quirks in my eating routine. While I love my body more and more every day, grateful for how it moves me through life, some of my obsessions from my earlier life have been hard to overcome. For example - Carb Phobia. I'm still pretty reticent to go to town on a bowl of pasta with sugary tomato sauce unless, of course, I'm in Italy. Finding nutritious alternatives have helped me quell my carb anxiety and feel better about choosing warming, comfort foods, particularly when the temperature drops. Pasta is so easy to make so I went in search of the healthiest options for my cravings. When it comes to alternative pastas, I like chickpea pasta the best. It is chock full of fiber and protein and you'll feel full with barely a cup! I've found the healthiest tomato based sauce to top my pasta called Otamot. (read it backwards. ;)) Their sauces are low on sugar (only 8 grams per 1/2 cup serving and chock full of other healthy vegetables including carrots, butternut squash, bell pepper, sweet potato and onion, just to name a few. They have three varieties -
their original 'essential' sauce, their spicy version which adds a three pepper blend for some kick, and their carrot bolognese, my personal favorite as it adds a bit of crunch texture!
My recipe is easy as pie (sorry to bring that up in a healthy post) but if you need guidance, here goes.
Prepare pasta according to directions on box
Warm 1 cup of Otamot sauce on low heat in saucepan
Toss together and if you really want to indulge, shave some fresh pecorino cheese on top! Going for something with even more nutritional bang? Saute some kale or spinach with garlic and toss that in. I sprinkled roasted pumpkin seeds on top! It's amazing what a quick and nutritious meal you can make without feeling like a bloated mess. Thanks Otamot for changing my view about what used to be a 'cheat food'! PS: If you want to find additional recipes using Otamot click here. They even have a bloody mary recipe using their sauce! SOLD.