Braised Italian Meat Sauce with Penne and Green Salad
Slowly simmered lean beef marinara over al dente penne pasta, accompanied by a fresh mixed green salad with Italian vinaigrette.
- Prep: 15 min
- Cook: 30 min
- Total: 45 min
- Servings: 5
- Cuisine: Italian
- Difficulty: Medium
- Cost: $4.27/serving
Dietary
- Dairy-Free
- Nut-Free
- Egg-Free
- Low-Fat
- Low-Saturated-Fat
- Low-Cholesterol
- High-Protein
- Low-Sugar
- Low-Calorie
Tags
- comfort food
- classic
- rich
- crowd-pleaser
- tangy
- fresh
Ingredients
- 1 pound lean ground beef (93% lean)
- 1 can canned crushed tomatoes
- 1 yellow onion (finely diced)
- 4 clove garlic (minced)
- 2 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 teaspoon dried basil
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 0.75 teaspoon salt
- 12 ounce penne pasta (uncooked)
- 6 cup mixed greens
- 1 cup cherry tomatoes (halved)
- 2 tablespoon red wine vinegar
Instructions
- Heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a Dutch oven over medium heat. Add finely diced yellow onion and lean ground beef, cooking for 6 minutes until meat is browned and cooked through to 160 degrees F.
- Add minced garlic, dried basil, dried oregano, and 1/2 teaspoon of the salt, stirring for 1 minute until fragrant.
- Pour in canned crushed tomatoes, bring to a gentle simmer, cover partially, and simmer on low heat for 20 minutes to develop the rich sauce flavor.
- Bring a large pot of water to a rolling boil and cook penne pasta for 10 minutes until al dente, then drain.
- Toss mixed salad greens and halved cherry tomatoes with red wine vinegar, the remaining 1 tablespoon of olive oil, and the remaining 1/4 teaspoon of salt in a large salad bowl.
- Toss drained penne with the simmered meat sauce and serve warm with the fresh Italian side salad.
Notes
Simmering the crushed tomatoes on low allows the acidity to mellow into a balanced marinara without needing dairy.
Nutrition (per serving)
- Calories: 493
- Protein: 30 g
- Carbohydrates: 63.6 g
- Fat: 13.1 g
- Fiber: 8 g
- Sodium: 641 mg
- Saturated Fat: 3.4 g
- Sugar: 7.9 g
- Cholesterol: 57 mg