Pretend that you have an Italian grandma.
Man, I have a long-term relationship with pasta. Since I was a kid, I’ve liked my pasta al dente. It was a long time before I learned this term. But it’s not that I’m a snob. I literally make my pasta sauce with leftovers from the fridge. I just blend everything and top it off with nooch. Yeah, I’m an awful person.
But this time, I’m gonna teach you how to make authentic, decent pasta. With fake meatballs.
The secret to the best Marinara sauce is simple. Ingredients. In season, use only fresh sun-ripened tomatoes. Otherwise, go for good-quality canned ones. Use lots of garlic. Spend a fortune on high-quality extra virgin olive oil. Taste your sauce. Add a few drops of aged balsamic vinegar for sweetness if you feel that it’s missing.
The vegan meatballs in this recipe are versatile. They are great, both with tomato and creamy sauce. You can double the ingredients and freeze them for later. They are easy to make and hold their shape very well.
So first preheat oven to 350 F.
Place the walnuts and rolled oats in a food processor and pulse a couple of times. They shouldn’t be too fine. Transfer the mixture to a mixing bowl. Blend the bread into small breadcrumbs. Add the remaining dry ingredients to the mixing bowl and stir.
Lastly, place the tofu, soy sauce, and vegetable stock in a food processor and blitz until smooth. Scoop the mixture into the dry ingredients and stir well.
Form the balls and place them on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.
Bake for 15 minutes. Turn the meatballs and bake for another 10 minutes.
While meatballs are baking, cook spaghetti and make Marinara sauce.
Heat a pan over medium heat. Add olive oil and garlic and sauté until fragrant. Add tomatoes and break them with a spatula. You can also break them with an immersion blender. Season with herbs, salt and pepper.
Cook for 5 minutes and add the meatballs. Continue cooking for another 10-15 minutes until sauce is thickened and meatballs are softened.
Serve over spaghetti.
PrintSpaghetti with vegan meatballs
Spaghetti with vegan meatballs in Marinara sauce.
- Prep Time: 10 min
- Cook Time: 40 min
- Total Time: 50 minutes
- Yield: 2 1x
- Category: Main course
- Cuisine: Italian
Ingredients
Scale
For meatballs:
- 5oz firm tofu (half package)
- 1 thick slice of bread
- 1/4 cup rolled oats
- 1/3 cup walnuts
- 1 tbsp tapioca starch
- 1 tbsp nutritional yeast flakes
- 1 shallot, minced
- 1 garlic clove, minced
- 1 tsp finely chopped fresh sage
- 1 pinch of dried oregano
- black pepper
- 1/8 cup vegetable stock
- 1 tbsp soy sauce
For Marinara sauce:
- 1 can of whole tomatoes
- 4 garlic cloves, minced
- few pinches each of dried oregano and basil
- 1 tbsp good quality extra virgin olive oil
- salt and black pepper to taste
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350˚F.
- Place the walnuts and rolled oats in a food processor and pulse a couple of times. They shouldn’t be too fine. Transfer the mixture to a mixing bowl. Blend the bread into small breadcrumbs. Add the remaining dry ingredients to the mixing bowl and stir.
- Lastly, place the tofu, soy sauce, and vegetable stock in a food processor and blitz until smooth. Scoop the mixture into the dry ingredients and stir well.
- Form the balls and place them on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.
- Bake for 15 minutes. Turn the meatballs and bake for another 10 minutes.
- While meatballs are baking, cook spaghetti and make Marinara sauce.
- Heat a pan over medium heat. Add olive oil and garlic and sauté until fragrant. Add tomatoes and break them with a spatula. You can also break them with an immersion blender. Season with herbs, salt and pepper.
- Cook for 5 minutes and add the meatballs. Continue cooking for another 10-15 minutes until sauce is thickened and meatballs are softened.
- Serve over spaghetti.
Notes
This recipe makes 2 big servings. You can divide it into three small.
Nutritional facts don’t include pasta.
Nutrition
- Calories: 345
- Sugar: 5.1g
- Sodium: 606mg
- Fat: 17.1g
- Saturated Fat: 1.7g
- Carbohydrates: 32.1g
- Fiber: 8.5g
- Protein: 20.7g
