Homemade Spaghetti Sauce

When I was a young girl, dear friends of our family suffered a great and unexpected loss of their father/husband/son. In "normal" fashion for my mother, she didn't hesitate to take the destitute family into our home. It wasn't long before I learned my mother's wisdom in "sharing." Soon we were a multi-generational family with a wonderful Italian grandmother who cooked and cooked to all our delight! It was from Nonna that my mother learned to cook Italian dishes including the oh, so important sauces. I will forever be indebted to Nonna for sharing old world cooking knowledge and this simple spaghetti sauce recipe. (Of course, Nonna insisted that fresh ingredients are key, but I find I cannot do it all from scratch, so this does use some canned ingredients. Forgive me, Nonna)

Ingredients 

(makes enough for freezing 3-30oz containers of sauce)
6 cups of tomato sauce
   (homemade is best, but I will
   use top notch plain canned
   tomato sauce because of time
   constraints)
2  cups tomato puree (again
   homemade is best, but canned
   will do, as long as it is pure)
2 cups diced fresh tomatoes
2 yellow onions, diced
4-6 garlic cloves crushed
     or minced (large ones)
1 cup diced fresh basil leaves    (or 2 tbsp. of dried basil)
2/3 cup diced fresh oregano
     leaves (or 1 tbsp. of      dried oregano)
1/3 cup diced fresh parsley leaves     (or 3 tsp. dried parsley)
Optional: 1 lb of ground beef
cooked in olive oil (ground turkeyor diced Italian sausage are also fine)

Directions

1. In a large pot on stove, over medium heat, mix in all the ingredients with the exception of the meat. Stirring as needed, let simmer on low. Do not let it boil.

2. In a large skillet, heat 1 tbsp. of olive oil and add the ground meat or sausage. Cook until all meat is cooked through. Drain excess oil/fat and add to sauce simmering on stove.

3. Allow the ingredients to simmer for at least 1/2 hour together. At this point the sauce can be used over pasta, used in casserole recipes, for pizza sauce or frozen in suitable size containers for future use.

Feel free to add different ingredients to make the sauce "your own." This is a simple recipe lending to adaptation. I have added eggplant, sweet peppers, summer squashes and more herbs depending on taste, what is in the garden and what my goal is for that particular meal. My husband likes a very thick sauce so I often add a small amount of tomato paste for him. Experiment and enjoy - Nonna would love it!

NOTE: Due to the falling local temperatures, this may be the last week for fresh, vine-     ripened tomatoes and green peppers at the Farmers' Market. Fall is here! The Saratoga Farmers' Market will operate at High Rock Pavilions until Oct. 31 (Wed. 3-6 and Sat 9-1). On Saturday, November 7, we move indoors to Division Street Elementary School, new home for our Winter Market (Saturdays only, 9-1).