Mom's Spaghetti With Meat Sauce

This is my Mom's spaghetti sauce recipe. Our family always loved the taste of Prego sauce, so Mom usually aimed for mimicing that flavor when she made her own. She and my Dad both made it the same way (because she taught him). Mom made spaghetti for us at least once a week. I remember she would always tell us, "You know what the trick is to those jarred sauces? They use sugar to give it that sweet-savory taste!"  And so she always put a little dash of sugar in her sauce. She also added a good squirt of ketchup for some tang. Thus me and Dad also picked up the habit. 

Mom's Spaghetti Sauce

Ingredients:

1-lb package spaghetti pasta, cooked according to package directions, drained, and tossed with 1 tsp olive oil to prevent sticking.

 Sauce:

• 2 lbs ground beef
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 onion, finely chopped
• 2 teaspoons dried basil
• 1 tsp dried thyme
• 2 teaspoons dried parsley
• ½ tsp dried rosemary, finely crushed
• 1 teaspoons salt
• 1 teaspoon ground pepper
• 1 tsp granulated garlic (or 4 cloves minced)
• 1.5 tablespoon sugar (or equivalent of low calorie sweetener)
• 1 tablespoon ketchup (can be sugar-free ketchup)
• 1 tsp lemon juice
• 2 (29-ounce) cans crushed tomatoes
• 1 (6-ounce) can tomato paste
• 1 cup beef stock (store bought or homemade)

Directions:

1.      Heat olive oil in a large pot.      

2.      Add the onions and cook 5 minutes.

3.      Add ground beef and cook until meat browns. Drain fat.    

4.      Add all of the seasonings (basil, thyme, parsley, rosemary, salt, pepper, garlic, sugar, ketchup, lemon juice). Cook 5 minutes to release flavors, stirring occasionally.         

5.      Add crushed tomatoes, tomato paste and beef stock. Stir to mix well and bring to a boil. Lower to a simmer, cover, and cook, stirring occasionally, for 1 hour. Taste for seasoning, adjust if needed. Remove from heat. serve with cooked pasta (over the pasta, or mix them together).