Spaghetti with Quick Meat Sauce

• servings: 8 servings
• total time: 30 minutes

Ingredients

1 pound whole-wheat spaghetti

2 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil

1 large onion, finely chopped

1 large carrot, finely chopped

1 stalk celery, finely chopped

4 cloves garlic, minced

1 tablespoon Italian seasoning

1 pound lean (90% or leaner) ground beef

1 28-ounce can crushed tomatoes

¼ cup chopped flat-leaf parsley

½ teaspoon salt

½ cup grated Parmesan cheese

Directions

Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Cook pasta until just tender, 8 to 10 minutes or according to package directions. Drain.

Meanwhile, heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add onion, carrot and celery and cook, stirring occasionally, until the onion is beginning to brown, 5 to 8 minutes.

Stir in garlic and Italian seasoning; cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add beef and cook, stirring and breaking up with a spoon, until no longer pink, 3 to 5 minutes. Increase heat to high. Stir in tomatoes and cook until thickened, 4 to 6 minutes. Stir in parsley and salt.

Serve the sauce over the pasta, sprinkled with cheese.

Nutrition

• Serving Size: 8 servings, 1 cup pasta
• Calories: 389 kcal
• Total Fat: 9 g
• Saturated Fat: 3 g
• Unsaturated Fat: 0 g
• Cholesterol: 48 mg
• Sodium: 484 mg
• Total Carbohydrate: 54 g
• Dietary Fiber: 9 g
• Total Sugars: 8 g
• Protein: 27 g