How is your holiday season going? We hope you a very Merry Christmas! My family had a wonderful day and now we are enjoying the slow and easy days of no school! It is so nice to have no where to go and just be able to enjoy my family in our cozy home. I am finding some extra time to stock up my freezer a bit. I made some hearty meat sauce the other day. I love to have this on hand for a quick dinner over pasta, to cut out a step in lasagna or add some taco seasoning and make beef enchiladas in a breeze. This meat sauce is very versatile and always so yummy! I know I will appreciate this sauce when school and sports start back up and life is busy again. I love to find shortcuts for my dinners on nights like that:)
Hearty Meat Sauce for the Freezer
submitted by Melanie~www.thesisterscafe.com
3 medium onions, chopped
3 pounds 90% lean ground beef (you could use half ground pork if desired)
3 garlic cloves, pressed
3 cans (28 ounces each) diced tomatoes in juice, undrained
3 cans (8 ounces each) tomato sauce
1 1/2 tablespoons sugar
1. Chop onions. Heat skillet over medium-high heat until hot. Add onions, ground beef and garlic. Cook 15-18 minutes or until no longer pink, breaking beef into crumbles; drain.
2. Transfer meat mixture to a 8qt stockpot. Add tomatoes, tomato sauce and sugar. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low; simmer 40-45 minutes or until sauce thickens, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat; cool slightly.
3. Place about 5 cups of sauce in separate freezer containers. Refrigerate up to 4 days or freeze up to 3 months.
Yield: 15 cups
Recipe Source: Pampered Chef
Freezer meals totally saved me during the busy weeks leading up to the holidays (and I agree now is the perfect time to restock!). Meat sauce is always a good thing to have on hand for busy nights.
ReplyDeleteWhat a great idea! Do you happen to have the recipes that you use this meat sauce in? Do you mind sharing those with us as well! I'm all about pre-cooking meat and freezing it :)
ReplyDelete