As tomato season comes to an end, it’s time for root vegetables to shine! Here’s a tomato sauce that is surprisingly delicious for not including tomatoes in it. Try making your typical tomato sauce with this blend of beets and carrots.
I’ve spent a few months eliminating nightshade vegetables. Those include eggplant, tomatoes, peppers and potatoes. They include compounds such as lectins that can be irritating to one’s digestion and may also cause allergies. I was suggested to eliminate them for a time to aid in healing my dysmenorrhea menstrual condition. Right now, my husband is following the Autoimmune Paleo diet to slowly wean off his ulcerative colitis medication.
He has been in remission from colitis ever since he stopped eating gluten. Before he eliminated gluten completely from his diet, he tried a few different medical, non-medical and dietary interventions. It seemed like a miracle that gluten was the missing piece to him being fully put into remission.
I’m not saying the meat sauce will heal your autoimmune disease, but why not give an elimination diet a chance? The key to optimal health seems to be nutritional optimization of the food you eat. What do I mean by that? Try to eat as many ingredients in your food that have in your diet that have as many vitamins, minerals and a good balance of protein, fat and carbohydrates.
One way to do this and not over complicate it is to buy local pastured meat. I love that Ferme Reveuse has pastured chicken but they also sell their own meat! When the animals are eating a species specific diet, you not only get more nutritious meat but you also help the animals grow naturally and stay healthy. Not only that but you also contribute to a healthy ecosystem despite popular belief. Check out Sacred Cow, the book and movie, for a great breakdown of how soil is vital to our agricultural survival and how farmers that promote regenerative agriculture is incredibly important. No, cow farts are not destroying the planet. Sorry.
Tomato-free Meat Sauce
serves 2-4, AIP, Dairy-free, Gluten-free, Paleo
2 small carrots, peeled and chopped
2 beets, peeled and chopped
4 tsp olive oil
1/2 tsp salt
1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
1 tsp honey
1 tbsp olive oil
1 onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, peeled and chopped
1lb Ferme Reveuse ground beef
1 cup Ferme Reveuse bone broth
1 sprig purple basil
1 bay leaf
Put carrots and beets into a small food processor. Blitz until chopped into fine pieces.
Heat 4 tsp olive oil in a saucepan over medium and add carrots and beets. Sautee until slightly caramelized, about 15 minutes. Add in salt, balsamic vinegar and honey. Cover and simmer for 1 hour. Blend.
Meanwhile, heat a saucepan with 1 tbsp olive oil and add chopped onion and garlic. Sautee 1-2 minutes or until the onion has softened. Add the ground beef and sautee until browned. Set aside.
When the carrot-beet mixture is finished, add to the beef along with the bone broth. Simmer the mixture on low for 30 minutes, or until the meat sauce has thickened slightly to your liking. Taste for seasoning and serve.
