Summer Cherry Tomato Meat Sauce with Fresh Basil and Feta

This light and fresh spin on meat sauce takes advantage of the bounty of summer cherry tomatoes and basil. Fresh lemon, olives, and feta change it up from the usual.   

Ingredients

• 2 lbs. Verde Grass-Fed Ground Beef 
• 3 pints (or approximately 1 lb.) cherry tomatoes 
• 1 cup dry white wine
• 1 tbsp. tomato paste
• 2 tbsp. white wine vinegar 
• 1 lemon, juice and zest 
• 6 oz. pitted Kalamata olives 
• 1 small Fresno pepper or another red chili, sliced thinly 
• 4-6 garlic cloves, minced 
• 2 cups fresh basil leaves 
• 1 cup crumbled feta 
• Olive oil 
• Salt and pepper to taste 
• Your choice of pasta, zucchini noodles or spaghetti squash, cooked and ready to serve  

Directions

• Heat 1 tbsp. of olive oil in a large sauté pan over medium heat.
• Add ground beef and minced garlic to the pan, breaking up the beef with a spoon. Cook for 5-7 minutes, until the ground beef is browned. 
• Season with salt and pepper. 
• Add tomato paste and wine, and reduce heat to medium-low. 
• Continue cooking and breaking up the beef into smaller pieces until the wine is almost all evaporated, approximately 5 minutes.
• Stir in white wine vinegar, lemon juice, and lemon zest. 
• Add in tomatoes and sliced chili pepper. Burst some of the tomatoes with a spoon to blend them into the beef. 
• Cook for another 6-8 minutes, stirring along the way. 
• Mix in olives. 
• Serve over your choice of noodles, with a large handful of basil and crumbled feta on top.