Meatless Monday - Easy Homemade Spaghetti Sauce

>> Monday, February 8, 2010

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I must admit, when I want to make spaghetti fast, I generally turn to a jar (Newman's Own Marinara to be exact).  When I have lots of extra time, I'll make a delicious 3 hour meat-filled spaghetti sauce that the adults love, but my kids...not so much.  My kids would so much rather have a meatless spaghetti sauce.  Somehow, I managed to forget about my quick homemade spaghetti sauce along the way.  Last week, I made it again and remembered how good and easy it is.


I came up with this recipe years and years ago.  In the beginning, I was lucky enough to have an abundance of home-canned tomatoes from my husband's grandfather made from his home-grown tomatoes.  Those tomatoes made the best sauce in the world.  My mouth still craves them.  Luckily, this sauce is still good with regular old store-bought canned tomatoes.  I add a little soy sauce and balsamic vinegar to give the sauce a little depth.  I also like to use fresh herbs, but you could use dried instead - just use less if you go the dried route.

The kids absolutely loved this spaghetti sauce.  Next time, I think that I'll try replacing the sugar with a 1/4 cup of sweet potato instead.  Oh - and don't be afraid to make extra!  This sauce freezes beautifully!



Cathy's Quick Spaghetti Sauce

1 onion, chopped
3 cloves of garlic, minced
1 lb 12 of canned crushed tomatoes
2-3 tsp fresh oregano, chopped
2 tsp sugar
2 TBSP tomato paste
1 tsp soy sauce
1 tsp balsamic vinegar
pepper to taste
6 oz mushrooms, chopped
1-2 tsp fresh oregano, chopped
1-2 TBSP fresh basil, chopped

Saute the onion in a sauce pan for 3-5 min.  Add pressed garlic and saute 1 minute more.  Add crushed tomatoes and bring to a boil.  Add next 7 ingredients (oregano through mushrooms).  Simmer uncovered for 30-40 minutes until desired consistency is reached.  Add salt to taste.  Add remaining oregano and basil at last minute.  Serve over spaghetti noodles.

I took a moment and used an immersion blender to puree the onion a bit after adding the crushed tomatoes.  That step is completely unnecessary, but it made the sauce more appealing to my kids who have a thing about onion chunks. 

6 comments:

Amy (Super Healthy Kids) February 8, 2010 at 11:55 AM  

Thanks Cathy. I think I need an immersion blender. Do you use yours a lot?

cathy February 8, 2010 at 1:10 PM  

Amy - I don't use it a ton, but when I need it, I need it (if that makes any sense). It's very handy for blending things on the fly, making smoothies, and (if you get one with a whisk attachment) mixing up emulsions or puddings. I actually use my immersion blender A LOT more than I do my regular blender!

Vivie February 8, 2010 at 8:32 PM  

I really appreciate a good homemade meat sauce as much as the next person, but time usually doesn't permit that. I do like your recipe, so I'll give it a try when I have time! THANKS! :)

Sagan February 10, 2010 at 3:38 PM  

That sounds tasty! I never liked onion chunks as a kid, either :) Nice idea about the sweet potato replacing the sugar, too.

jennifer February 11, 2010 at 8:47 AM  

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Red January 1, 2012 at 3:46 PM  

This looks great but I am not sure how much canned crushed tomatoes to use, is it 1 lb 12 oz? Is that the same as a 28 oz (by volume) can? I have just discovered your blog and hope to come back often!

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