A childhood classic made at home in less than 20 minutes with pantry staples, total win right? One Pot Spaghettios with Meatballs will become an instant weeknight family favorite.
Childhood Vibes
Do you have any foods that totally bring you back to childhood or a certain time in your life? As a kid, I loved Spaghettios and any time I see them on the grocery store shelf a smile comes to my face.
But let me tell you, I picked up a can recently for memories sake and they aren’t the same as I remember. Maybe my palate changed, maybe they were always flavorless mush…the great mysteries of life. But I still have those nostalgic feelings towards them so I thought I would attempt a homemade version.
That was a good decision. Homemade is so much tastier (hello herbs and spices) and I feel way better about feeding it to my family. No weird ingredients here my friends.
Plus, everything gets thrown into the pot and cooks for less than 20 minutes. Seriously guys, 20 minutes and dinner is ready with most of the time being inactive cooking. Our weeknights are getting busier and busier as the kids get older and more involved in activities so I love having recipes like this one to get dinner on the table fast.
And you all know the saga of my picky child…well, this was a 100% success with him. I mean, who doesn’t like tomatoey cheesy pasta with meatballs? Luckily, the weird one does.
I promise you that this homemade version really does taste pretty dang similar to the original but with way more flavor and no mush. And it is almost as easy as opening the can and microwaving them. For real.
- 1 cup water
- 4 cups chicken stock
- 1/4 cup tomato paste
- 15 oz. can tomato sauce
- 3/4 tsp. kosher salt
- 1/4 tsp. pepper
- 1/4 tsp. onion powder
- 1/4 tsp. garlic powder
- 1 tsp. dried basil
- 16 oz. pasta rings
- 12-16 frozen meatballs, thawed and cut into quarters
- 1 cup shredded cheddar
- In a large pot, stir together the water, chicken stock, tomato paste, tomato sauce, salt, pepper, onion powder, garlic powder and basil. Bring to a boil. Once boiling, add the pasta and the meatballs and stir. Lower to a light boil and cook for about 12 minutes, or until pasta is tender. Remove from heat and stir in cheddar cheese. Serve.
December 7, 2016 at 11:21 am
Those pasta rings were how I finally got Nora to start eating noodles! LOVE this idea! I too have fond childhood memories of Spaghetti-O’s!