Recipe Swap

Sunday sauce is a staple in this house.  We love spaghetti and meatballs and afternoons spent together as a family.  I’ve tried to find ways to update this comfort food without changing it too drastically.  Yes, I have tried turkey meatballs and personally they are not my favorite recipe swap.  I’ve also invested in a spiralizer and make zucchini noodles and spaghetti squash as options to replace the traditional spaghetti noodle.  Both of these are good options for the meal, but I personally am not prevented from eating gluten for any health reasons and do prefer pasta with my Sunday meals most weeks.  Below is my updated version of the traditional spaghetti and meatball dinner.

Bison is a great choice for your meatball dinner.  My family can’t tell the difference when I use bison in place of beef.  I can’t say the same about turkey meatballs.  Grass-fed Bison is a low fat, low cholesterol meat with as many Omega-3s per serving as a serving of salmon.  The taste, texture and color is the same as beef, but this meat packs a nice amount of iron as well.  I order mine online, but am sure you can find bison in any store that has quality meats.  The pricing is very similar to that of beef.  Be sure to always buy grass fed, organic versions of any meats you eat.

Bison Meatballs

Ingredients

1. 1 egg
2. 1 pound ground bison
3. 1/2 cup homemade gluten free bread crumbs
4. 1/4 cup freshly grated pecorino or parmesan cheese
5. 2 tbs water
6. Optional – I finely chop two kale leaves and mix in to sneak in a vegetable serving sometimes.

Directions

1. Combine all ingredients and form into small meatballs.  Roll them firmly in your hand to ensure they hold together.
2. Place on tray and cook in oven for 20-25 minutes at 350 degrees to brown.
3. Remove from oven and drop meatballs into your sauce.
4. Cook for at least 45 minutes, or however long you like your sauce to simmer.

Homemade Spaghetti

I do not have any gluten sensitivities, but I do try to limit my intake.  When it comes to pasta, I really only eat it once per week.  I prefer to make my own pasta and have an easy to use attachment for my Kitchen Aid that doesn’t require me to roll out the pasta.  I simply drop it into the machine.  You can substitute the all purpose flour for whole wheat and it comes out fine.  You can also find many gluten free recipes, but they do require many ingredients.  This is the actual recipe I use for my pasta.  I prefer that I know exactly what is going into my pasta, all ingredients I can pronounce.

Ingredients

1. 1 egg, beaten
2. 1/2 teaspoon salt
3. 1/2 flour 00
4. 1/2 cup semolina flour
5. 2 tablespoons water Add all ingredients to list

Directions

1. In a medium sized bowl, combine all flour and salt.
2. Make a well in the flour, add the slightly beaten egg, and mix. Mixture should form a stiff dough. If needed, stir in 1 to 2 tablespoons water.
3. On a lightly floured surface, knead dough for about 3 to 4 minutes. With a pasta machine or by hand roll dough out to desired thinness. Use machine or knife to cut into strips of desired width.

The above directions are for those who do not have a pasta machine.  I make mine right in my Kitchen Aid with the dough attachment so I don’t have to manually knead it.  I let my dough rest covered for at least 30 minutes.  I then roll into small balls and drop into my pasta cutting attachment.  So simple, so delicious!  Here is the attachment I use on my Kitchen Aid –

KitchenAid KSMPEXTA Gourmet Pasta Press Attachment with 6 Interchangeable Pasta Plates

The white attachment on this machine is the actual unit I have.  I love it and it has made making homemade pasta so easy.  It’s simple to use and clean.  It comes with 6 blades for different shape pastas.

Homemade breadcrumbs – Gluten Free

Toast gluten free bread in oven on sheet tray.  Remove, process in food processor.  Season as you wish.  I just use a slight amount of garlic, pepper, salt and Italian seasoning.

If you try the Bison as a healthier option, let me know how you like it.  My family hasn’t noticed and my daughter is super picky!  Please leave a comment if you have a different recipe swap for Sunday sauce.  It’s one of our favorite meals so I’m always on the lookout for healthier versions.

Author: laurakump

I'm a mother, wife and daughter on a mission to reclaim my health. I've watched loved ones suffer from memory robbing Alzheimers and refuse to lose my precious memories to this disease. Small changes have helped me achieve health and fitness. I'm an Elementary School Principal on a mission to impact students lives. I believe we can change this world one child at a time. View all posts by laurakump