KAY'S ALL DAY SPAGHETTI SAUCE

Steps:

• 1. In a skillet, brown the ground chuck over medium-high heat. Add onion, cook until there is no remaining pink color in beef. Drain off any liquids and set beef/onion mixture aside.
• 2. In a large pot over medium heat, mix together the canned tomatoes, tomato sauce and paste. (See tip below for flavored tomato products.) Stir until well mixed. Fill tomato paste can with water and then add that water to pot of tomato mixture. Then add in packaged spaghetti sauce spice mix and stir until well mixed. Add balsamic vinegar and brown sugar and stir. Add seasonings, stir well and heat until tomato mixture begins to bubble up/boil lightly. Reduce heat to just above simmer. Add in browned beef and onion mixture, and stir.
• 3. Next, add in the sliced mushrooms, diced bell pepper and sliced green onions, including sliced stems. Stir, cover and simmer over low heat 5-7 hours, stirring occasionally... every half hour works best.(You can make this in a crockpot, but it doesn't work as well as the slow simmer and stir method.) When stirring, try and always stir up any sauce that is thickening and sticking to the bottom so it will keep the flavors enriching the whole pot of sauce.
• 4. About 45 minutes before you plan to serve the meal: Add in the can of sliced black olives and stir.
• 5. About 15 minutes before you plan to serve the meal: Turn the heat OFF under the pot, remove the lid and let it sit to thicken.
• 6. Meanwhile, (as the sauce is thickening) bring a large pot of water to rapid boil. Boil pasta noodles according to directions on the package until "al dente". Drain and rinse quickly with cool water to stop the cooking process.
• 7. Serve pasta with heaping ladles of sauce, top with grated cheese. Serve with a side salad and garlic bread. Note: Leftovers reheated in the microwave are even better the next day since the sauce thickens even more! (I like to make this on Saturday so my hubby can have leftovers all weekend while I relax.)
• 8. HINT: When selecting the tomato sauce, tomato paste and petite diced tomatoes try using ones that are flavored with roasted garlic or basil or balsamic vinegar if they are available.