Spaghetti is Magic

No matter how wild and insane the kids are, if I put a plate of steaming spaghetti with meat sauce in front of them, there is instantaneous silence.  It's got to be the good stuff, though.  Ragu doesn't have this power, only the stuff I make.

So, since I am sometimes asked how I cope with four kids underfoot, I thought I'd share one of my tricks.  Grandma's magical meat sauce!

You will need a large sauce pan, a wooden spoon and the following ingredients:

1 pound of hamburger
4 cloves of garlic
2 16 oz cans of tomato puree (or four cups pureed tomatoes, or 7-9 roma tomatoes, minced)
2 tsp basil (fresh- less if dry)
1 tsp each oregano and thyme (fresh- less if dry) (or substitute these spices for a little more than a tablespoon of Italian mixed spices)
a few pinches of onion powder
salt & pepper to taste

This recipe is also really good with all Italian sausage or half and half with the hamburger.

Heat up your pan and cook the meat until it is JUST brown, breaking apart the bigger chunks with your spoon (but you do want it kind of chunky), then drain off the fat.  Add in the garlic and spices and cook until fully browned and dry.  Pour in the tomatoes, turn down the heat to low and simmer for a half hour.

Serve over pasta of your choice or on bagels (I don't know why the kids like this, but they do) and I promise, you will have silence until it is gone.