Spaghetti Bolognese Recipe with Hidden Veg

This is a delicious, nutritious Spaghetti Bolognese recipe with a twist…hidden veggies!

I’m all for introducing whole vegetables to my fussy eater.

I wrote about how we’ve been using a sticker chart with some success to get from NO VEGGIES to licking a pea to eating a carrot, and I think a love of veg is hugely important. I am their biggest fan.

But the going is slow and in the mean time, sometimes (especially on a school night or after a busy week) I just need an easy win and to know my fussy boy is getting something really good and wholesome inside him.

Hence this Spaghetti Bolognese recipe with hidden veg!

Spaghetti Bolognese Recipe with Hidden Veg

Here’s a quick 1 min video to give you an idea of what’s involved and scroll down for full recipe details…

Ingredients

1 tbsp olive oil

1 garlic clove

1 tsp smoked paprika (optional)

1tsp mixed herbs

1 onion

500g beef mince (you can double this if you like it meaty)

For the hidden Veg 

Anything of your choice really (such as cauliflower, peppers or courgette)! But I’ve gone for orange and neutral things…

2 Carrots

half a butternut squash

1 leek

700g jar of Passata

Instructions

1. Start with your olive oil, garlic, smoked paprika warming in the pan

2. Once you get a nice aroma, add your onion

3. after a few minutes the onion will start to soften, then add the mince

4. When the mince beef has browned all over, remove to a separate bowl

5. In the same pan add a cup or so of water and your remaining hidden veg (except the Passata), you can also add more mixed herbs and smoked paprika at this stage, should you wish

6. Pop a lid on your pan to let the veg bubble away and soften for between 10 to 20 mins

7. Put veggie mixture in a blender, add the Passata, and blend until smooth

8. Add the blended mixture back to your pan, then add the meat mixture back in and let the whole thing bubble away, low and slow for as long as you want. At this stage you can also add more water as necessary or for extra flavour and depth add some beef stock.

9. Keep checking every now and then to make sure you don’t need more water but this can be left on low for quite a few hours and it’ll be ready for when you or your hungry little ones need it.

Just add your accompaniment of choice – mine is courgetti, Reuben’s is Spaghetti or ‘twisty’ pasta! And we both love cheese…

Do you think your little one would entertain this Spaghetti Bolognese Recipe?

I’d love to hear how you get on in the comments below or come and join the conversation on the Mums’ Days Facebook Page!