Four Nights A Week

When we were helping my Mom at her condo recently, I came across several well-worn cookbooks with recipes I remembered from my childhood. More importantly was the discovery of two metal recipe card boxes filled with my Mom’s tried-and-true recipes. There, in her handwriting as well as that of my Aunt Eleanor and Grandmother, I found the culinary memories of my growing up years.

I’ve embarked on a project recently to document those recipes by photographing the finished product for this blog and including the recipes themselves. In fact, my siblings, in-laws, and the “cousins” are all getting into the act of contributing their favorites. If interested, search for the category “Family Favorites”.

This recipe is marked “Mother’s” Spaghetti Sauce, which I am guessing meant my Grandmother, Edna Wyant Flournoy’s sauce. Grandma was not of Italian heritage, but she was a terrific cook. Don’t expect Marcella Hazen or, if I can recreate it, my Sicilian Grandfather, Emanuel Puglisi’s recipe for Sunday sauce (meatless). This was, however, the pasta sauce my family grew up with to the extent that when Emanuel Sr. came to cook his more traditional Italian sauce for us on a visit, I didn’t believe it was for authentic. Where was the ground beef?

Still, this sauce, “authentic” or not, reminded me of spaghetti night in our Midwestern home. It’s filling, tomatoey and freezes well. Honestly, I didn’t bother with the extra butter or corn oil. That, to me, was just a step too far away from my Italian/Sicilian ancestry.

Mother’s Spaghetti Sauce

From Sarah Puglisi’s Recipe Card Collection

Ingredients:

• 1 lb. ground beef (leaner is better)
• 2 8-oz. cans tomato sauce
• 2 8-oz. cans tomato paste
• 2 TBSP parsley (fresh if possible)
• 2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1/4 c shopped onion
• OPTIONAL: 1/4 c butter
• OPTIONAL: 1/4 c corn oil
• OPTIONAL: 1 small can mushroom pieces
• EITHER: 1/2 tsp dried oregano or 1/2 tsp dry sweet basil
• Dry hot red pepper (shake)
• Water, Tomato Juice or Red Wine for thinning as needed

Method:

1. Brown ground meat (I poured off the extra fat)
2. Add all of the other ingredients, mix.
3. Cook over low heat UNCOVERED for approximately 3 hours. Watch heat as will burn easily. Best to use heavy bottom pan.
4. May easily be doubled or tripled.
5. This amount is about right for 1 lb. fine spaghetti (pasta) and for 4 generous servings.