How to Make Karen Anderson's Hot Italian Sausage Pasta Sauce

This truly makes a big batch, freezes beautifully, and can be used in a variety of ways. Serve it over your favourite pasta--we're currently loving it with orecchiette--or as the meat component in lasagna. You can even add a few different cans of drained and rinsed beans and some chili powder for a quick and easy chili. This sauce served over a big plate of pasta is my family’s favourite meal to come home to after a long fall day of outdoor work or fun.

Hot Italian Sausage Sauce

makes 6 quarts

Ingredients

3–4 cloves garlic, minced
2 small zucchinis, chopped into bite-sized pieces
2 large green bell peppers, chopped into bite-sized pieces
1 large yellow bell pepper, chopped into bite-sized pieces
30–40 cremini mushrooms, halved
Two 28-ounce (796 ml) cans whole tomatoes
4 cups (1 L bottle) tomato sauce
5½-ounce (156 ml) can tomato paste
1 Tablespoon dried parsley
1 Tablespoon dried basil
1 Tablespoon dried oregano
3–4 dried bay leaves
10-ounce (300-gram) package frozen chopped spinach

Recipe

1. Remove the meat from the sausage casings and brown it in a non-stick frying pan over medium heat, breaking it up into a fine crumble as it cooks.
2. Drain the fat from the pan and put the meat on a plate between layers of paper towel to absorb the remaining fat from the meat. Set the meat aside.
3. Heat the oil in a large stockpot over medium heat and add the onions. Cook until translucent and then add the garlic and cook just until it becomes fragrant, about 30 seconds.
4. Stir in the zucchini, bell peppers, mushrooms, tomatoes, tomato sauce and paste, parsley, basil, oregano, bay leaves, and still-frozen spinach, adjust the heat to low, and bring to a slow steady simmer for 2 to 3 hours. And that’s as hard as it gets!