Nana's Spaghetti Sauce

This past Thursday I hosted quite a distinguished guest at my home: my mother!  And, knowing that the next item on my crockpot recipe list was my Nana's (her mother's) spaghetti sauce, she offered to put her expertise in that area to work.  She showed up at my home while I was at work and made the sauce in my crockpot during the day!  And, as a wonderful surprise, I arrived home from work to an absolutely delicious, homecooked supper.  I love you, Mom!

I'm most excited to share this recipe because it is one of my direct ties to my Nana, who unfortunately passed away before I was born.  When my Mom makes this sauce, it brings back her own memories of her mom making it -- even though she tells me it's really her sister who taught her how to make it (thanks Aunt D!) -- and I feel like I can share them with her.  It really feels like it brings us all together.  It's amazing and wonderful how food can do that for us, isn't it?

Nana's Spaghetti Sauce

Ingredients:
2 29-oz cans of tomato puree
3 15-oz cans of tomato sauce
2 18-oz cans of tomato paste
1 12-oz can of tomato paste
1 12-oz can of water
1+ tablespoon parmesan cheese (i.e., a heaping tablespoon)
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon oregano
3/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper (add more for a real kick)
1 teaspoon minced onions
Salt & pepper
4 Splenda packets (can use Sweet'n'Low or Equal instead)

1. Heat 5- or 6-qt crockpot on HIGH.

2. Put all ingredients in the crockpot in the order listed above.  The dry ingredients should be spread over the top of the combination of sauce/puree/paste.  When you get to salt and pepper, sprinkle over the top to taste.  Put the Splenda (i.e., artificial sweetener) on top last.

3. Mix well initially so all the ingredients blend together thoroughly.  Cook on HIGH for 4 hours.  The sauce will bubble so keep it covered!  (My Mom left the top off for much of the cooking -- which doesn't make a difference cooking-wise -- but which created quite a mess on my counter tops and cabinet doors!  Thanks for that, Mom. :)  Stir occasionally as the sauce is cooking so it doesn't get stuck to the bottom.

That's it!  Super easy and super yummy.  It has a little bit of a kick to it with the 3/4 teaspoon of crushed red pepper, but we in my family have fairly weak abilities to stomach heat.  So for you spice-lovers, I recommend upping the amount of crushed red pepper flakes you add.  Try not to use crushed or diced or stewed tomatoes -- the sauce is intended to be smooth, not chunky.  If you like chunky sauce, though, I imagine that you could alter the tomato types added that create the base of the sauce.  There is a lot of room for flexibility with this recipe!  Finally, if you don't have the time or opportunity to stir the sauce occasionally while it's cooking, you should be able to cook it on LOW for 6-7 hours instead.  This should hopefully help take care of the sticking problem.


We ate the sauce with cooked spiraled pasta and homemade meatballs.  It really goes well with all kinds of pasta (I have memories growing up of eating it with spaghetti and ziti, in particular), and -- in my mind -- it pairs wonderfully with meat such as meatballs, Italian sweet or hot sausage, and pork.  I always add a little extra parmesan cheese to my dish, but my Mom is always quick to remind me that there is already parmesan cheese in the sauce.  (It tastes good either way, if you ask me!) :)

I hope you enjoy this sauce as much as my family does.  Who knows, maybe you can add your own twist to it and pass it on to future generations in your family one day!  Enjoy!