Slow-Cooker Meaty Italian Spaghetti Sauce

By carvalhohm2

Ingredients

• 2 lb bulk Italian pork sausage or ground beef
• 2 large onions, chopped (2 cups)
• 2 cups sliced fresh mushrooms (6 oz)
• 3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
• 1 can (28 oz) diced tomatoes, undrained
• 2 cans (15 oz each) tomato sauce
• 1 can (6 oz) tomato paste
• 1 tablespoon dried basil leaves
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano leaves
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes

Details

Adapted from bettycrocker.com

Preparation

Step 1

1 Spray 5-quart slow cooker with cooking spray. In 12-inch skillet, cook sausage, onions, mushrooms and garlic over medium heat about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until sausage is no longer pink; drain.

2 Spoon sausage mixture into cooker. Stir in remaining ingredients.

3 Cover; cook on Low heat setting 8 to 9 hours.

Expert Tips:
Ladle this versatile sauce into refrigerator or freezer containers; cover and refrigerate up to 4 days or freeze up to 4 months. To thaw frozen spaghetti sauce, place container in the refrigerator about 8 hours.

Serve with penne pasta, Caesar salad and Italian bread.

Stir about 1/4 cup of chopped fresh parsley into the sauce during the last 5 minutes of cooking.

Serving Size: 1 Serving Calories90 ( Calories from Fat45), Total Fat5g (Saturated Fat1 1/2g, Trans Fat0g ), Cholesterol15mg Sodium450mg Total Carbohydrate7g (Dietary Fiber1g Sugars4g ), Protein4g