My Special Spaghetti Sauce

Yesterday I made spaghetti for a CROWD!!. It was an all-you-can-eat Spaghetti Feed and we served about 125 people (maybe a little more) . This is my third year doing this and it gets bigger every year. Perhaps it's because they love my sauce...at least that's what everyone says.

I want to share my recipe with you, but it is a bit difficult because there are few actual measurements of ingredients. I have a tendency to make things up as I go along...you know "that looks about right" or "about a hand/palm full". But I can tell you the basics. I suggest that you use your own judgement on amounts. However, leaving the vegetables out is a NO-NO. That's what makes this sauce so goooood!!

MY SPECIAL SPAGHETTI SAUCE

--ONE batch serves about 50 people depending on the size of the portions--

(This is ONE BATCH)

8-1/2 pounds of hamburger (22% fat)

2 pounds of mild Italian sausage

2 or 3 cups of medium dice onions

1 large red bell pepper (medium dice)

1 large green bell pepper (medium dice)

1 large yellow bell pepper (medium dice)

1 large orange bell pepper (medium dice)

1 bunch of celery (medium dice)

5 or 6 carrots "pulverized" in a food processor into 1/8" to 1/4" bits

6 tablespoons of minced garlic

4 tablespoons dry Italian seasoning

2 tablespoons salt

1 or 2 tablespoons ground black pepper

2 institutional size cans of crushed tomatoes

2 institutional size cans of diced tomatoes

1 - 8.5 pound bottle of Ragu Spaghetti Sauce

1 cup of Kraft parmeasan cheese

1/3 cup Olive oil

Saute all the vegetables and garlic, salt and pepper in the Olive oil until they are soft/translucent. Meanwhile, brown the ground beef and Italian sausage in a Dutch oven; drain well. Add the meat to the vegetables. Season with Italian seasoning. Add the crushed tomatoes, diced tomatoes and Ragu. Mix well and continue cooking on medium high until heated through - stirring frequently to prevent burning on the bottom. Add the parmeasan cheese; thoroughly incorporate. Reduce heat to simmer for another half-hour; again stirring frequently to prevent burning. Turn off heat and cover tightly. This will retain its heat during service without turning on a burner again for at least a couple of hours. Serve over cooked spaghetti noodles and wait for the oohs and aahs.

Some people balk at the fact that this sauce has carrots and celery in it, but I have to tell you, carrots and celery are essential to the success of this sauce. They serve to sweeten and thicken the sauce and simply add a layer of flavor that is heavenly.

I use this same recipe -- only in much smaller amounts -- at home. SPECIAL note to Vegetarians/Vegans: This sauce is equally as good without any meat at all; however, eliminating the meat means it will not serve quite as many people.

Peace...and I'm outta' here.