Mama's Spaghetti (sauce)

Total Time: 1 hr 15 mins Preparation Time: 15 mins Cook Time: 1 hr

Ingredients

• 3 lbs lean ground beef
• 2 (3 lb) jars prego spaghetti sauce
• 2 (14 ounce) cans diced tomatoes
• 1 (14 ounce) can tomato sauce
• 1 tablespoon garlic, crushed
• 1 tablespoon dried oregano
• 1 tablespoon dried basil
• 4 bay leaves
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon black pepper
• 1 cup red wine, to taste
• 1 onion, diced
• 1 bell pepper, diced
• 1 cup mushroom, chopped (optional)

Recipe

• 1 place ground beef in large pot or pan (i cook it directly in the pot that i'm going to use for the sauce).
• 2 lightly season with salt, pepper, and garlic. add onions, if desired. brown beef until no pink remains. drain and return to pot.
• 3 pour prego sauce, diced tomatoes, and tomato sauce over meat. cook over medium heat. stir until well mixed.
• 4 add red wine and seasonings to taste; don't over-season - it blocks out the robust tomato flavor.
• 5 add bell peppers and/or mushrooms, if desired. continue cooking over medium heat until thoroughly hot, stirring frequently.
• 6 reduce heat to medium/low and let sauce simmer for 1-3 hours (the longer it cooks, the lower the heat should be, but not so low that it does nothing but keep warm). stir as necessary.
• 7 cook pasta according to package directions (i usually remove the sauce from heat at about the same time, to allow the sauce to cool fractionally before serving).
• 8 fill plate/bowl with pasta and sauce.