Grace’s Best Spaghetti Sauce

This is the best spaghetti sauce I’ve ever tasted – hands down! Forget the store-bought jars of sauce; after making this homemade spaghetti sauce you’ll never buy a jar of spaghetti sauce again! Control the ingredients in your food and reap the flavourful rewards of a 40 year old recipe, first shared here at Bluestem Gables.

I was first served this homemade spaghetti sauce at a dear friend’s home 15 years ago. There were probably a dozen people there, and we were all amazed at how delicious this simple staple was. So of course, I asked Grace for the recipe.

Then she tells me she’ll do her best, but there has been no written recipe for the 25 years she’s been making it. She just throws things together. Then she tells me that, growing up, her mother was a terrible cook (lovely lady, but not gifted in the kitchen), so Grace was determined to learn.

Tips for Grace’s Best Spaghetti Sauce

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Of course, I do my own tweaking, and you’ll find both Grace’s tips and mine below. This homemade spaghetti sauce is much more economical than store bought spaghetti sauce, made more so by using bulk ingredients. Leftovers or extras freeze well. Grace makes a “huge honkin” batch and freezes it in smaller containers.

I usually substitute the canned tomato sauce and ketchup for a jar of my own blended tomatoes. I have also used store bought canned diced tomatoes and blended them. They usually have fewer additives than the tomato sauce.

If canned tomatoes makes the sauce too runny, make sure to drain them and/or add the can of tomato soup. Baked and blended (or canned) pumpkin also thickens the sauce and tempers the acidity of the tomatoes. This sauce should not be thin, but thick and full of ingredients.

I substitute the Italian seasoning with the individual herbs, oregano, basil and thyme, including some of my own dried herbs. Learn how to dry your own herbs in this article. I also add a pinch of sage – it complements the meat nicely. My garden isn’t wet enough to grow celery very well, but I can grow the perennial, lovage, and use a pinch of that instead.

The true secret ingredient is – gasp – the sugar. It is only a small amount, but don’t leave it out!

If I have mushrooms, peppers, or celery I add them to the recipe. If I don’t have them on hand, I leave them out. Instead, I often add some shredded carrots. Learn about how I store carrots in this article. It adds some sweetness as well, and adds a built in side of vegetables. Throw it in the pot and, VOILA, you have a one-pot-wonder for dinner!

Traditionally, ground beef is used for this recipe, but like a lot of my recipes, ground pork works very well, or Italian sausage.

There are so many shapes of pasta to choose from, so choose your favourite! Pick up some whole grain pasta for a healthy choice. Of course, spaghetti is the traditional favourite, but I prefer the slightly narrower noodles of spaghettini.

Let’s get cooking Grace’s Best Spaghetti Sauce!