Broccoli Slaw Spaghetti {recipe}

Spaghetti is an awesome quick and easy meal for busy nights or lazy days when I’ve got no motivation to cook up something fancy to eat.

We’ve been cutting back the amount of grains we eat and trying to eat more vegetables, and about a year ago I discovered spaghetti squash, which is an awesome substitution that my family enjoys. The drawback to spaghetti squash is that it takes planning and time to roast the squash ahead of time. And when I cook spaghetti squash, I usually have to cook it with a meat sauce or meatballs to make the texture work for us.

A couple of months ago, I was leisurely perusing the produce section and discovered bags of organic broccoli slaw. I bought it because I thought it would be good to add to salads or a soup, but then after Googling “broccoli slaw” I came across a Hungry Girl recipe and discovered that you could make spaghetti with it. I was super skeptical.

The first time we had it, I was trapped under a sleeping baby and my husband made it for dinner with my instructions. He was super skeptical too, but to our surprise, it was a winner for the whole family, even my three year old. When I made this for lunch today so I could take a picture, she excitedly said, ” We get to eat that for lunch?!” and ate the entire plate pictured below. Seeing your kid eat a cup of veggies for lunch makes for a happy mama!

Broccoli slaw spaghetti is now my go-to meal when I need something on the table in under 15 minutes. Just like traditional pasta spaghetti, you can put your own stamp on this basic recipe and add in anything that suits your fancy. I’ve added cream and Parmesan cheese to make a creamy tomato sauce, added garlic and onion, added ground beef…the possibilities are endless.

This basic recipe has just two main ingredients: broccoli slaw and a jar of spaghetti sauce. I have found organic broccoli slaw at HEB and Trader Joe’s. There are several brands of organic spaghetti sauce I like, but I always look for varieties that don’t include added sugar or refined oil such as canola oil or soybean oil.

Don’t be a skeptic like I was, and give this a try! Let me know in a comment how it turns out.