Mmm….craving a hearty and delicious pasta dish, but you’ve got food intolerances? Fret not! With a few tweaks to a classic favourite, I’ve created a gluten-free, dairy-free and egg-free meatball marinara! This hypoallergenic diet-friendly dish (as long you aren’t avoiding the nightshade family, because this recipe calls for tons of tomatoes!) is loaded with flavour, nutrients and protein. Perfect for meal prepping on Sundays, because believe me you will have tons for the week as well as enough to store in the freezer.
I served mine on a bed of quinoa, while my hubby opted for more traditional whole wheat spaghetti. If you’re dairy-free, a sprinkling of some nutritional yeast and chili powder is the perfect garnish.
Anyone who’s seen my recipes before knows that I tend to “eyeball” things a lot and add ingredients based on flavor. So please feel free to adjust as necessary according to your taste. Bon appétit!
Ingredients
Sauce
- 2 cans of crushed tomatoes
- 2 cans of tomato sauce
- 1 can of tomato paste
- 1T dried oregano
- 2 bay leaves
- 2t crushed chili peppers
- 2t garlic salt
- 2t onion salt
- 2t brown sugar (optional)
- 1t baking soda (optional)
Meatballs
- 3lbs ground meat (I used 2 lbs of antibiotic & hormone-free angus ground beef & 1 lbs of antibiotic and hormone-free lean ground pork)
- 1C chopped parsley
- 1C gluten-free bread crumbs
- 2T ground flax seed
- 6T hot water
Instructions
- Combine all sauce ingredients, except for brown sugar and baking soda, in a large crock pot. Turn to low and cover.
- In a small bowl, combine ground flax seed and hot water and set aside for a few minutes (you want it to become thick and gooey like the consistency of an egg white).
- In a large mixing bowl, combine ground meat, chopped parsley, bread crumbs and thickened ground flax. Mix with your hands.
- Shape mixture into 1-2 inch balls.
- Warm olive oil or ghee in a large skillet over medium heat.
- Brown the sides of each meatball, approximately 1-2 minutes per side.
- Add browned meatballs to crockpot.
- Simmer for 8 hours.
- Note: at the 4-5 hour mark, taste test the sauce and determine if additional spices are necessary. To cut any bitterness, add brown sugar and baking soda. If you like it with a bit more of a kick, add in extra chili powder and oregano.
- Serve over a bed of quinoa or gluten-free pasta of your choice. Garnishing with fresh basil, nutritional yeast and/or crushed chili peppers adds a nice touch!
Nutrition
- Yields approximately 12 servings (2-3 meatballs with sauce) of gluten-free, dairy-free, egg-free meatball marinara goodness!
- Calories: 358 per services
- Carbohydrates: 24.6g
- Fat: 18.33g
- Protein: 24.7g
