Eat Well: Vegan Immunity Boosting Tomato Sauce with Mushrooms

With flu season in full swing and all this snow forcing us to spend a lot of time indoors with our fellow companions, I’ve found my body craving some nourishment and warmth from the inside.  A few months ago, at the recommendation of a yogi friend, I purchased the cookbook, “Oh She Glows” by Angela Liddon.  The book itself is beautiful, the recipes delicious and inspiring.  I most recently made the “immunity boosting tomato sauce with mushrooms” and I’ve been LOVING it this week.  Prep is easy and meal is wholesome and satisfying.  Hope you enjoy it!!!
~Lisbeth
INGREDIENTS:
– 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
–  1 sweet onion diced
– 4 cloves garlic minced
– 3 cups sliced cremini mushrooms (about 8 ounces) [I used a package of organic baby bellas, cut thin and diced)
– 1/2 cup fresh basil chopped [must be fresh!]
– 1 (28 ounce can) diced tomatoes in their juice
– 6-8 tablespoons tomato paste
– 1/2 – 1 teaspoon fine grain sea salt
– 1 1/2 teaspoons dried oregano
– 1/2 teaspoon thyme
– 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes or cayenne pepper (optional)
– 2 tablespoons chia seeds (optional, will thicken the sauce)
– 1 cup cooked lentils [trader joes sells these for a great price and no prep needed, I used 1/2 the package]
RECIPE (with my tips/tricks added):
PREP TIME: 20 minutes; COOK TIME: 30 minutes
Serve with angel hair pasta or for an even healthier option spaghetti squash (if you’re going with the squash, start baking it before you start prepping the sauce and it should wrap up at about the time you need it to).
1. In a large saucepan, heat the olive oil over medium heat.  Add the onion, garlic and stir to combine.  Sauté for 5-6 minutes, until the onion is translucent.
2. Stir in the mushrooms and raise the heat to medium-high.  Cover.  Cook for 5-10 minutes.
3.  Add the basil, tomatoes and their juice, tomato paste, salt, oregano and thyme.  Simmer for 5 minutes.
4.  Reduce heat to medium.  Add the optional chia seeds, red pepper flakes/cayenne  ( I didn’t add any of these items).  Stir to combine.  Simmer for 5 minutes.
5.  Add the cooked lentils. Simmer the sauce for 10- 15 minutes stirring every so often.
6. Serve over pasta or squash and ENJOY!!
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