No Tomato 'Tomato' Sauce

[awanderingbard]

Long time no post. It's been sort of A Series of Unfortunate Events around here for the past little while, thankfully most of which have resolved favourably, or are on their way to being good. I'm not good for much these days, but Mom and I have been making some dietary changes, trying to swap out ingredients for healthier versions and eat a bit less, in aid of both our health woes. It's been really yummy! Dad had been doing most of the cooking for dinner and continually making meals that didn't appeal to Mom, who has very low iron still from the blood loss during her surgery last year. So we decided she and I would make dinner, and if Dad wanted, he could share, or he could make his own dinner, and the meals we've had have been really delicious.

Anyway, in my search for good recipes, I stumbled on pumpkin chili. About four years ago, I started reacting to nightshades (tomatoes, potatoes, peppers, eggplant) and had to cut them out from my diet. It wasn't that big a deal once I got the hang of swapping things, but things like spaghetti with tomato sauce and pizza with tomato sauce and chili was something I really missed. I decided to give the pumpkin chili a try and it was amazing! Not quite like real tomatoes, but a similar flavour, and very satisfying. After fiddling around, I was able to make spaghetti and pizza sauce from it, too, both of which were also excellent. I thought I'd post my method here, for those who also have allergies, or are avoiding nightshades due to arthritis or dietary concerns, or just wanted to try it. It still tastes of pumpkin, so if you don't like pumpkin, this won't make it taste any less pumpkiny. Just more tomato-y.

Tomatoish Sauce Base
1 15 oz/398ml can of pumpkin puree (or pumpkin/squash mix)
1 cup of broth of your choice
Seasoning of your choice (I use garlic powder, black pepper, and salt)
1 tbs white vinegar (optional, but gives it a more 'tomato-y' tang)

Combine all ingredients together, seasoning to your liking. Pumpkin is bland, so prepare to season a lot.

To make chili: throw the base into a slow cooker with some beans, ground meat of your choice (brown it first!), and whatever else you want. Cook on low for eight hours or high for four. I'm no good at serving sizes, but I got three large bowls of chili from it, so it will serve at least three if not more.

To make spaghetti sauce: add a little bit of sugar or sweetener to the base (I put in two tsps), and whatever else you'd like. We use ground beef, mushrooms, and onions, browned together. Add that to the base, and warm over low in a sauce pot until heated to your liking. I got two servings of sauce out of it. We take spaghetti seriously here, you might get more if you don't like as much sauce.

To make pizza sauce: add a little bit of sugar or sweetener. Stick on a pizza crust, add toppings, and follow crust directions to bake. I halved the recipe and got one pizza out of it, so the full recipe should be enough for two pizzas.

Comments

[donutsweeper]

I'm glad you were able to find a substitution that worked for you! Food allergies can be really annoying.

[awanderingbard]

I'm lucky in that I don't have any anaphylaxis, just food sensitivities. I am unlucky in that I am also sensitive to soy and certain food dyes. Soy is the worst and hardest There's only one restaurant I can eat at that doesn't use soy to cook their food. But it's good in some ways because when it comes to things that maybe aren't the healthiest to eat, I don't have the option to buy them and eat them. If I want cheesecake, I have to make it from scratch, and then I decide I'm not going to get enough pleasure from that cheesecake to put in the effort for that. Saves me some calories in the long run, even if I would like a donut or something every once in a while. :-)

[donutsweeper]

oh yeah, soy's a hard one, it's been the go to "this is healthy and cheap, shove it in food" sort of thing for a while.

I'm very sensitive to MSG which is really commonly used as a flavoring so I totally understand the frustration!

[awanderingbard]

Oh, yeah, MSG is hard to avoid and it goes by so many sneaky names! I tried for a while to see if that was what was triggering my migraine, and I still try to avoid it when I can. I'm lucky to be able to eat organic food most of the time, not due to any theory that it's better for me, just because it most often doesn't have what I'm sensitive to in it. It's rare to see MSG there, or colour. Soup is almost unavoidable for msg, though. It's only Amy's soups I found that are okay. I've been able to have some broth with yeast extract in it without trouble, though. I think it's more a case of how much how often and if there's anything else that I'm sensitive to in it.

[donutsweeper]

Yeah, it can be pretty hard. Pretty much there is MSG in all flavored chips/snack foods and that kind of thing and a lot of "Chinese" type foods depending where you are (oddly in MN a lot of Chinese food places have MSG-free labels or say they can make stuff without it while in NY it's really hard to avoid).

Sticking with the organic stuff is not a bad idea, there tends to be a lot less additives in it. I wish it were cheaper though

[awanderingbard]

It is very expensive, which is why I am grateful I'm able to eat it. We have a really great store here called Farm Boy which sells organic food that's pretty reasonable, for organic food.

If you have the opportunity to splurge, I know Annie's products are available in the States and I doubt they would have MSG in them. They've been a lifesaver for me, in terms of having treats once in a while, along with Enjoy Life. They aren't too unreasonable in price, at least up here. Amy's is also good, but on the pricier side. Oh, and Late July is quite yummy. Their cheese sandwich crackers are to die for. :-P

[donutsweeper]

I have ocassionally bought Annie's, Amy's and Late July if I see them only sale. I tend to make my own desserts, but I'll definitely keep an eye out for Enjoy Life products, it looks like they're sold near me. Thanks! :)

[awanderingbard]

Their chocolate chips are soy-free, which is so hard to find with chocolate anything. It's a nice treat to have.

We do must of our own baking here, too. My parents are both diabetic, in addition to my allergies, so if we want something everyone can eat, we have to make it ourselves. You can have low sugar desserts, which are always filled with soy and colour, or organic desserts, which are chock full of sugar. It's easier just to do it ourselves. :-D

[donutsweeper]

Oh dear, the combo of diabeties + allergies must make choosing food difficult!

ETA- oh! I know you're interested in genealogy and just found this-

https://blog.myheritage.com/2017/08/record-week-search-one-billion-census-records-for-free/

"In celebration of our recent milestone — surpassing 8 billion historical records on SuperSearch — we’re happy to announce that we’re making all of our major census collections from the U.S., U.K. and Ireland, Canada, and Nordic countries free for all users for one week!"

[aelfgyfu_mead]

Wonderful! I'm glad it works for you and you like it!

My mom has a tomato allergy. I'll share this with her.

[awanderingbard.livejournal.com]

I hope it helps her! Today I discovered if you toss some sour cream in and eat it cold, it's a good dip for taco chips, too. The possibilities are endless! 😋