Recipe 1: Mama Dalley's Spaghetti Sauce

This recipe was passed down from a friend of mine's Mom. If you like your spaghetti sauce with a lot of meat, look no further than the recipe below. It is to DIE for! Follow the instructions exactly how the are written-- Mama Dalley knows what she's talking about (measurements, etc.)!

Mama Dalley's Spaghetti Sauce

3 lbs hot Italian sausage, bulk

3 lbs mild (or sweet) Italian sausage, bulk

3 lbs (+/-) ground beef, lean

2 (28 oz) cans diced tomatoes (I use Hunts)

2 (28 oz) cans Italian (Plum) tomatoes

2 (28 oz) cans tomato sauce

3 small cans tomato paste with Italian herbs

2 large cans Campbell's tomato soup

1 can (16 oz or so) spinach

2 large carrots (better yet, the equivalent in baby carrots), finely diced

1/2 bunch green onions, chopped

1 T olive oil

salt and pepper

1/2 (or more) can grated Parmesan

1 pkg each of fresh basil and oregano, chopped

Set-up a colander in a bowl or pot. In a LARGE pot, warm up the olive oil and add the white onion and carrots. Cook at medium heat. Meanwhile, saute 1 1/2 lb. of sausage until all browned. Dump meat into colander. When drained, transfer meat into a large bowl. Saute the next package of sausage, repeating the process ending with the beef. Allow the vegetables to lightly brown. After draining and squeezing dry the spinach, finely, finely mince and add it to the veggies. Add drained meat (whatever is done at that point). Add tomato paste and combine well. Add chopped green onion. As rest of meat is browned and drained, add to mixture always combining very well so the distribution is even. Add 1/2 can of Parmesan and 1 can of tomato soup. Mix well. In blender, chop the plum tomatoes, add with juice to the meat mixture. Add diced, undrained tomatoes, mix and add the 2 cans of sauce. Add the herbs and small amount of salt and pepper. Taste, if sauce is too acidic add the second can of soup. Simmer on low heat. If too thick, add small amount of water.

Package and freeze. Will keep in freezer for one year.

Thank you Mama Dalley for sharing this with me!!!

Helpful hints:

- She's not kidding... use a LARGE pot... and have a long wooden spoon

- If you've got help available, it's great to have a 2nd person make all of the meat. 9 lbs takes a while!

- I use 6 Gladware 8 CUPS / 64 OZ size containers. Each to freeze and reheat.

(I had pictures of us making the sauce but they're missing- about 15 days worth of pics are no where to be found. Mama's not happy about that! If they do come up somewhere, I'll post them later.)

Please let me know if you try it. I'd love to hear what you think.