Just Add Sauce

If you and your family resolved to eat healthier this year, you probably began by basing your dinners around grilled chicken and vegetables, occasionally adding whole-grain starches like brown rice and whole-wheat pasta. All too soon, you find you’ve either fallen off of the healthy eating wagon, or else dread the boring chicken and veggies on your dinner table every night! Luckily, stepping up your dinnertime game for delicious results can be as simple as tweaking recipes that are based around one sauce. (And we promise they won’t derail your healthy eating!). Here, we’ll show you some new ways to use tomato sauce in a variety of dishes to surprise and delight your taste buds.

For a quick and easy dinner -- or even an afterschool snack -- make English Muffin pizzas. Simply preheat your oven, split English muffins in half, and then top with sauce and shredded mozzarella cheese. Bake around 10 minutes at 375 F, or until the cheese melts. We give it an A-plus in ease and taste.

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For a fresh spin on chicken, whip up this Chicken and Wild Mushroom Pilaf recipe, made with chicken drumsticks, green peas, mushroom and herb rice pilaf mix, with tomato sauce. You’ll be surprised at how the rice absorbs the sauce in the skillet, and how this tomato base helps add a new flavor dimension to historically ho-hum chicken and rice dishes. Plus, it’s a new and delicious way to incorporate chicken and veggies into a dish that doesn’t feel tired.

Whether you love slow-cooker chili or make a faster version on the stovetop for a one-dish dinner, use tomato sauce as your base. Simply add it to the beef and bean combo, then add paprika, chili flakes, chilies, jalapenos or other seasonings to make it as spicy or seasoned as you’d like!

Tex-Mex may not be an obvious thought for a healthy weeknight meal. So you may be surprised that no salt added tomato sauce can be a great base for slow-cooker Southwest Beef and Bean Burritos. The sauce keeps the beef moist and tender for tasty tortillas!