• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to footer navigation
  • Skip to header navigation
  • Skip to privacy navigation
  • Skip to recipes navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • About
  • My Cookbooks
  • Work With Me
  • Shop
  • Contact

The Flavor Bender

Master the Science of Delicious

  • Recipe Index
    • All Recipes
    • Desserts
      • Cakes & Cupcakes
      • Candy & Bite Sizes
      • Chocolate
      • Cookies, Brownies & Bars
      • Frozen Desserts
      • Fruit Desserts
      • Puddings & Custards
      • Dessert drinks
      • No Bake
      • Pastries & Breads
      • Sweet Syrups & Spreads
      • Tarts & Pies
      • Cheesecakes
      • Healthy sweets
    • Breakfasts
      • Tarts, Quiches, & Pies
      • Waffles, Pancakes & Crepes
      • Quick Breads, Scones & Muffins
      • Breakfast Sandwiches
      • Pastries & Breads
      • Eggs
      • Breakfast & Brunch Drinks
      • Make Ahead Breakfasts
      • Healthy Breakfasts
      • Coffee and Tea drinks
      • Breakfast Smoothies & Juices
      • Breakfast Sides
      • Casseroles
    • Courses
      • Main Meals
        • Bread, Sandwiches & Burgers
        • Curries
        • Salads
        • Roasts & BBQ
        • Soups & Stews
        • Casseroles
      • Bread
      • Lunch
      • Beverages
      • Appetizers & Tapas
      • Sides
      • Dips & Condiments
      • Tea Time & Snacks
      • Desserts
      • Meal Prep
      • Cocktails
    • Cuisines
      • American
      • European
      • Australasian
      • Sri Lankan
      • East Asian
      • Mexican
      • Middle Eastern
      • South Asian
    • Sri Lankan
      • Main Meals
      • Drinks
    • Skill Level
      • Easy
        • Easy Desserts
        • Easy Cooking
        • Easy Breads
        • Easy Breakfasts
        • Easy Dinners
      • Intermediate
        • Intermediate Desserts
        • Intermediate Cooking
        • Intermediate Breads
        • Intermediate Breakfasts
        • Intermediate Dinners
      • Advanced
        • Advanced Desserts
        • Advanced Cooking
  • New? Start Here
  • Measurement Conversions
  • How-To Posts
The Flavor Bender Recipes Courses Dips & Condiments Marinara Sauce with Hidden Vegetables

Marinara Sauce with Hidden Vegetables

Easy
Dips & Condiments
Jump to Recipe Print Recipe
448 shares

Disclaimer: The Flavor Bender is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program. There are links on this site that can be defined as “affiliate links”. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases (at no cost to you) that will help support this website.

Author: Dini K.
Posted: 2/23/2016
Updated: 7/17/2023

Packed with carrots, celery, zucchini, onions and tomatoes of course, this is a deliciously healthy Marinara Sauce with Hidden Vegetables that’s super simple to make and can be a starting point for a variety of recipes, and is a great way to sneak some veggies into your kids’ meals!

(Pin it for Later)

Marinara Sauce with Hidden Vegetables - This Marinara Sauce can be used as Pasta Sauce, Base for Bolognese, Dipping Sauce OR Pizza Sauce! So Versatile and packed with flavor and HEAPS of nutrition!

Marinara Sauce with Hidden Vegetables - This Marinara Sauce can be used as Pasta Sauce, Base for Bolognese, Dipping Sauce OR Pizza Sauce! So Versatile and packed with flavor and HEAPS of nutrition!

A good homemade Marinara Sauce is one of life’s simple pleasures, as well as a neat trick up your sleeve to have because there’s little else that can be as versatile as this. In addition to pasta, marinara sauce can also be a great vehicle for other recipes like meatballs, roasted meats, lasagnas, seafood etc. And of course it’s very freezer-friendly, so you could very well make extra and save it for later.

Marinara Sauce with Hidden Vegetables - This Marinara Sauce can be used as Pasta Sauce, Base for Bolognese, Dipping Sauce OR Pizza Sauce! So Versatile and packed with flavor and HEAPS of nutrition!

Originating from Naples, Italy, marinara sauce is a simple tomato sauce that also usually incorporates garlic, onions and herbs. It’s such a deliciously simple sauce to make using ingredients that you should most likely already have in your pantry, that you’d be crazy not to have some in your fridge at all times.

And I’m sure you’ve heard it before that homemade beats anything store-bought, when it comes to marinara sauce. There’s nothing wrong with store-bought of course if that’s what you like and you trust the brand. But when something is this easy to make, you’d be missing out on a good thing by not trying it yourself at home. Plus you know precisely what goes in your sauce by making it yourself.

Marinara Sauce with Hidden Vegetables - This Marinara Sauce can be used as Pasta Sauce, Base for Bolognese, Dipping Sauce OR Pizza Sauce! So Versatile and packed with flavor and HEAPS of nutrition!

This recipe however goes beyond the basic marinara sauce as it incorporates hidden vegetables! If you have kids who are finicky about eating their vegetables, you’ll know how satisfying it is when you can sneak some veggies into them. 🙂 If that’s you, then this Marinara Sauce with Hidden Vegetables is going to be a life saver! Packed with carrots, onions, celery and zucchini, this is a healthy, great-tasting sauce that would be perfect on anything really.

Just in the last couple of weeks we’ve had this as a base for bolognese, Meatballs, Pasta Sauce, as a dipping sauce and on top of homemade pizza! It would be the PERFECT base to use when you make this Gluten Free Polenta Lasagna Bolognese! The extra carrots will of course make this marinara sauce slightly orange in colour, not the typical red of classic marinara. So if you’re a marinara sauce puritan, look away now. 🙂 But it tastes just as fantastic, and is chock-full of veggies which you won’t even realize since all the veggies have been pureed.

(Pin it for Later)

Marinara Sauce with Hidden Vegetables - This Marinara Sauce can be used as Pasta Sauce, Base for Bolognese, Dipping Sauce OR Pizza Sauce! So Versatile and packed with flavor and HEAPS of nutrition!

Looking for more recipes?Sign up for my free recipe newsletter to get new recipes in your inbox each week! Find me sharing more inspiration on Pinterest and Instagram.

5 from 1 vote

Marinara Sauce with Hidden Vegetables

Author: Dini K.
Difficulty: Easy
Print Rate

Ingredients:

  • 3 tbsp Olive Oil
  • 1 packed cup of grated carrot
  • 1 ½ packed cups of grated zucchini
  • ½ of a medium onion cut into chunks
  • 3-4 celery ribs cut roughly into chunks
  • 4 - 5 garlic cloves
  • 28 oz can of whole tomatoes (796 mL can) peeled or diced tomatoes ok too
  • 2 tbsp tomato puree optional
  • 2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
  • 2 tbsp brown sugar
  • Salt to taste
  • ½ tsp cayenne pepper
  • 3 tbsp chopped fresh oregano

Instructions:

  • Place the carrot, zucchini, onion, garlic cloves and celery in a blender. Process until you have pureed the vegetables together.
  • Heat the olive oil in a saucepan over medium heat. When it's hot, add the pureed vegetable and cook until the moisture has evaporated and it starts to caramelize and turn brown.
  • Add the tomato to the vegetables. (Note : if you're using whole tomatoes, crush them with your hands, or pulse them in the blender to help break them up).
  • Add the tomato puree, vinegar, sugar, cayenne pepper and a generous pinch of salt and simmer for about 20 minutes. Add the oregano and simmer for another 10 minutes.
  • Season to taste as you go.
  • You can store the marinara sauce in a bottle in the fridge.

“This website provides approximate nutrition information for convenience and as a courtesy only. Nutrition data is gathered primarily from the USDA Food Composition Database, whenever available, or otherwise other online calculators.”

Did you make this?Tag me on Instagram!I love seeing what you’ve made! Tag me on Instagram at @TheFlavorBender or leave me a comment & rating below.

Polenta Lasagna Bolognese - This gluten free, delicious family recipe will become a favourite in your family too! Made with alot of love and #simmeredintradition

Just click on the picture above, to get the recipe for Polenta Lasagna Bolognese that can be made using this recipe!

Canned tomatoes are perfectly acceptable for homemade marinara sauce. Whole, peeled tomatoes would be the best way to go, but even diced should work. Make sure they are not flavoured canned tomatoes however. You’ll be adding all the flavour yourself. 🙂

This sauce is versatile, can be made in a pinch using readily available ingredients, super freezer-friendly and your family won’t even know they are eating a plateful of vegetables. That’s a win-win-win any way you look at it. 🙂

If you liked this recipe don’t forget to subscribe for new (and free) recipes by entering your email address below or on the side bar (and get all these recipes delivered straight to your inbox), so you don’t miss out on a thing. You can find me on FACEBOOK, TWITTER, INSTAGRAM, PINTEREST and GOOGLE-PLUS too.

More Recipes You'll Love...

  • White Chocolate Magic Shell Sauce - Two ingredients, and one minute are all you need to make this easy White Chocolate Magic Shell Sauce and transform all your cold desserts with a little bit of creamy white chocolate awesomeness!
    White Chocolate Magic Shell Sauce
  • Homemade Easy Cranberry Sauce - An easy and versatile recipe to make amazing cranberry sauce for Thanksgiving! Plus, leftovers can be used in so many ways too. #ThanksgivingRecipes #CranberrySauce #EasyRecipes
    Versatile and Easy Cranberry Sauce
  • Homemade Tomatillo Enchilada Sauce - With a little kick from jalapenos, concentrated flavour from roasting tomatillos and pablanos, a little tang from lime juice and all the amazing spices, this delicious homemade green enchilada sauce will transform anything you pair it with! REPIN to save. CLICK to get the recipe
    Homemade Green Enchilada Sauce Recipe (with Roasted Tomatillos)

Reader Interactions

Leave a Review Cancel reply

I love hearing from you! Submit your question or recipe review here.

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Made this? Rate this recipe:




This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

  1. Amiee Sauble says

    April 22, 2020 at 15:12

    Excellent recipe so dam delicious!!!

    Reply
  2. Gary Lloyd says

    January 12, 2020 at 05:27

    I wanted to make this recipe today because all 5 of my grand-kiddies are non-veggie eaters. I try every trick in the book and so far it has always worked.
    But this pasta sauce recipe calls for a “can” of tomatoes… What is a can of anything? Even in USA, depending on the markets you shop, can size is quite varied. We are in the Mediterranean and very little here is canned let alone all is one size container.
    PLEASE please make your recipes independent of your location.
    I was hoping this could be the first recipe from you newly found website. Possibly next week…

    Reply
    • Dini says

      January 12, 2020 at 08:14

      Hi Gary!
      This has been fixed 🙂 Thank you for letting me know. My older recipes on the blog are still being edited to be more globally accessible to match with the newer recipes. I do appreciate you letting me know about the ingredients.
      Cheers
      Dini

      Reply
  3. Mel says

    June 19, 2016 at 03:28

    Hi Dini! What size canned tomatoes would you use for this recipe? Thank you!

    Reply
    • Dini says

      June 19, 2016 at 08:46

      Hi Mel!
      I used a big can of petite diced tomatoes 1lb and 12 oz 🙂
      Hope you enjoy the Marinara!

      Reply
      • Mel says

        June 19, 2016 at 09:35

        Thank you! So about 2 x 400g canned tomatoes (am from Australia too =D). I have made your Polenta Lasagna Bolognese three times now using turkey mince, the bolognese is to die for, thank you again, please keep up the beautiful recipes!

        Reply
        • Dini says

          June 19, 2016 at 10:09

          Yep, absolutely Mel! I do miss my gram measurements from Australia too 😀
          and thank you so much for that wonderful feedback! That makes me REALLY happy. You can use the same bolognese recipe to make my Beef Cannelloni recipe (with Turkey subbed in) that I posted recently too. Thank you again for making my day! I hope you have a wonderful week 🙂

          Reply
  4. Bam's Kitchen says

    February 28, 2016 at 04:38

    5 stars
    You sound just like a mom!! LOL I won’t tell if you won’t tell about the hidden veggies that is. I am sure that the added carrots made this Bolognese even more tender and delicious. We are on the same wavelength as just a few days ago I made pasta and Bolognese sauce too. Great minds think alike. Pinning, sharing, smoke signals sent!

    Reply
  5. Christine | Mid-Life Croissant says

    February 24, 2016 at 12:32

    I am embarrassed, being an Italian-American (not to mention a food blogger), that I do NOT have a marinara recipe up my sleeve. I’ll take this one. Thanks for helping me hold my head up once again D xo

    Reply
    • Dini says

      February 25, 2016 at 21:10

      Aw! Thank you C! 🙂 Although this is not an authentic recipe, I like it because I get to sneak vegetables into it & no one can ever tell! 🙂

      Reply
  6. Ilona @ Ilona's Passion says

    February 23, 2016 at 17:19

    I love the idea of hidden veggies!

    Reply
    • Dini says

      February 25, 2016 at 21:11

      Thank you Ilona 🙂 Me too!

      Reply

Primary Sidebar

Hey there!

Hi! I’m Dini, a third culture kid by upbringing and a food-geek by nature. I was born in Sri Lanka, grew up in New Zealand and lived in Australia, and then the US, before moving to Canada in 2019! My food is a reflection of those amazing experiences!

Read More
Secret Layer Cakes Cookbook
The flavor bender
cookbook
Buy now on Amazon!

Recipe Basics

Learn how to make Perfect Choux Pastry (Or Pate a Choux!) - The only recipe guide you will ever need to make choux pastry, with perfect results every time. Plus a troubleshooting guide for your choux pastry recipe.  Fool proof choux pastry to make profiteroles, eclairs, cream puffs and more.  #ChouxPastry #Profiteroles #Eclairs #Pastry #CreamPuffs

How to make Perfect Choux Pastry

Classic Chocolate Eclairs - A foolproof recipe for making perfect eclairs that are crisp and puffy and filled with chocolate or vanilla pastry cream. 

Perfect Classic Chocolate Eclairs (Foolproof Recipe)

How to make Marshmallows - Learn the art of making fluffy, soft homemade marshmallows with or without corn syrup! With tips and information to make the perfect Marshmallows in many flavors. 

How to make Marshmallows (tips and tricks for homemade marshmallows)

How to make the best Homemade White Bread that is soft and delicious. An easy to follow recipe for perfect homemade bread with step by step instructions.

The Best Homemade Bread (White Bread Recipe)

Homemade French Croissants (step by step recipe)

Classic Pound Cake - A complete guide on how to make perfect, delicious and moist Pound Cake even if you're a baking novice! Tips + Tricks and Troubleshooting guide. 

The Best Classic Pound Cake Recipe

Chocolate
Cakes
Bread
Sri Lankan
Breakfast
Drinks
Candy
Pastries
All Recipes
Featured On
taste of the World
Free recipe ebook

Get my curated collection of the Top 10 Flavor Bender recipes!

  • 10 delicious chocolate recipes
  • Creative ways to use chocolate
  • Desserts and savory recipes
Download now!

Reader Faves

How to make Instant Pot Short Ribs - This easy recipe makes delicious, tender and succulent short ribs with classic flavors!

How to make the Best Instant Pot Short Ribs

Buttery Lemon Slow Roasted Salmon with Lemon Butter Sauce - Perfectly cooked, juicy slow roasted Salmon with a buttery tangy sauce! Delicious and versatile for any meal and occasion. 

Slow Roasted Salmon with Lemon Butter Sauce

Unbelievably easy Rough Puff pastry - Quick and easy to make and tasted infinitely better than store bought (30 -45 minutes only)! No long waiting times, to make this amazing pastry and NOONE will know you took a shortcut!

Perfect Quick and Easy Rough Puff Pastry

Spicy Sweet Chilli Sauce Easy to make, absolutely delicious, with an extra kick of spice this is the BEST Sweet chilli sauce you will EVER have!

The Best Spicy Sweet Chili Sauce (Easy Recipe!)

The flavor bender

I love baking, and I love cooking. I experiment with flavors, textures and ingredients, and I love passing on all my tips and tricks to you!

Read More
  • About
    • Meet Dini
    • My Book
    • Work With Me
    • Contact
  • Browse
    • Recipes
    • Measurement Guide
    • Baking How-To’s
    • Shop My Faves
© The Flavor Bender
  • Privacy
  • Disclosure
  • Terms
Site Credits Designed by Melissa Rose Design Developed by Once Coupled

Join the flavor bender tribe!

Join my FREE recipe challenge to receive new recipes and dinner ideas straight to your inbox!
448 shares