Gluten-free spaghetti meatballs with the best tomato-free pasta sauce ever!

No-tomato, no problem!

Growing up (and to this day) my mum’s spaghetti Bolognese is my number one dinner treat. In our family we’ve always had the tradition that we can choose any dinner on our birthday, and my mum will cook it. Where other family members would choose fillét mignon’s and lobster, I choose my mum’s delicious spaghetti with her homemade sauce. Yum!

But what now, that I’ve learnt I’m intolerant to tomatoes? No worries! Let me introduce you to my amazing tomato-free (nomato?) sauce which works just as well with pasta, pizza, soup and anything else that might call for tomato sauce!

This delicious no-tomato sauce is easy to make and tastes remarkably like “the real deal”, not to mention it is super tasty and very healthy. No sugar needed, because the vegetables used in this sauce are nice and sweet, unlike regular tomatoes.

I recommend jarring or freezing larger portions of this sauce, so that you can simply reach into the pantry for more whenever you need it!

To accompany the yummy tomato-free pasta sauce, I’ve made homemade meatballs and gluten-free spaghetti.

The lovely people at Schär have kindly sent me a pack of gluten-free spaghetti to try, and what better excuse to whip up some delicious spaghetti meatballs!

To serve four, you’ll need:

500 grams of gluten-free spaghetti

Meatballs:

400 grams of minced meat
2 tbsp corn- or potato starch
300 ml milk or dairy-free alternative
1 tsp salt and 1 tsp pepper
1 garlic clove, pressed or grated
1 tbsp grated onion
1 ml finely chopped mushrooms
2 tbsp grated parmigiano cheese
1 egg (can skip if need be)

Nomato sauce” Tomato-free sauce:

4 small to medium carrots, grated
5 medium or 4 large red capsicum (peppers) in strips
1/2 cup diced butternut squash
1/2 beetroot diced
2 garlic cloves, chopped finely
1/2 cup diced onion
2 cups vegetable stock (free of MSG and yeast extract)
100 ml cream (can be skipped or substituted with dairy-free)
1 tbsp chopped parsley
1 tbsp chopped basil
1 tbsp oregano
1 tbsp thyme
1/2 tsp coarsely ground pepper
2 laurel leaves
3 tbsp olive oil
2 tbsp white wine vinegar or apple cider vinegar (skip for acid-intolerants and people with Interstitial Cysticitis)
Salt to taste

Fresh herbs will give the best flavour, but dried spices are totally ok.

Tip: I recommend doubling it (or more) to freeze or can for later!

Method:

Start by mixing all the dry ingredients for the meatballs. Knead the meat with your hands; really get in there, and add milk slowly to soften the mixture. Shape balls in the palm of your hand with a wet spoon, and set aside.
Chop all the vegetables and herbs, and place all the ingredients for the sauce, bar the cream, into a large pot. Bring to a boil, and let it simmer until all the vegetables are soft.
Once the veggies have softened, set the pot aside, leaving the lid on. Start preparing the pasta as per the descriptions on the pack.
Whilst the pasta is boiling, start frying your meatballs in some butter or oil.
Once the meatballs are cooked you can pour the vegetable mix into a blender or food processor, and mix on high until the sauce is too your liking. Some like “lumps” and some like it smooth. It’s up to you!
Once the pasta is ready, you serve it with sauce, meatballs and some parmigiano on top. A fresh sprig of basil adds a bit of extra colour!

I recommend serving your spaghetti meatballs with fresh gluten-free bread!

Tip: If you are planning on freezing part of the sauce for later, you can skip the cream and add it once you defrost the sauce. Just in case you want to use the tomato-free sauce for something other than pasta!