Veggie Packed Pizza Sauce

Cooking for kids is never easy... or appreciated! I have a 13 month old and a 3 1/2 year old, so almost everything I make either ends up on the floor or is pushed away with declarations of "I don't like dat mommy!" Some days I want to cry, others I just shrug and say "well I guess you're gonna be hungry today then".

I'm sure every mom can agree that veggies, at one time or another, are the real battle. Whether it's the texture, the taste or merely the colour, kids seem to avoid veggies like I avoid 3-sided mirrors.

There are a few cookbooks out on the market about hiding fruits and veggies in sneaky ways to trick kids into eating them. I'm not cruel enough to hide spinach in a brownie (I love spinach but that particular combination gives me the dry heaves) but I am willing to sneak extra veggies into recipes where it seems fitting, like my homemade pizza sauce.

A variety of roasted veggies paired with garlic and tomato paste and then puréed until smooth makes a healthy, vitamin and nutrient rich sauce that your family will love, even if your pizza is a meat lovers!

Veggie Packed Pizza Sauce

1 carrot, peeled and diced
1 onion, chopped
1/2 green pepper, seeded and chopped
1/2 red pepper, seeded and chopped
1/2 yellow pepper, seeded and chopped
1 stalk celery, diced
1 c. mushrooms, cleaned and chopped
1 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
1 tsp dried oregano
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp. sea salt (optional, but I find it helps to balance the sweetness of the tomato paste)
1 can tomato paste
1 c. crushed tomatoes

Instructions:

1. Roughly chop your veggies (no need to be fussy as it will all be puréed) and place in a large bowl.
2. Add garlic, oregano, salt and olive oil and mix to coat.
3. Spread veggies out on a cookie sheet and roast in a 450˚F oven for 15-20 minutes.
4. Remove veggies from the oven and allow to cool for 5 minutes.
5. Add veggies to a food processor or blender and purée until smooth.
6. Add tomato paste and crushed tomatoes to veggie purée and blend until smooth.
7. Store in the fridge for up to 3 weeks.

Tip: I spread a generous amount of sauce onto a greek pita, top with a little bit of part skim mozzarella and pop it into a 350˚F oven for 10 minutes and my kids have a super fast and easy lunch that they gobble up with no food throwing or complaints!

enjoy!
Amanda