As much as I sometimes like to resort to “convenience meals,” I worry about my family’s health and like to do some cooking from scratch.
After checking the 2010 Dietary Guidelines and reading about the benefits of tomatoes, I learned a few things. Did you know that there is a relationship between consuming tomatoes and tomato products with reduced risk of certain cancers, heart disease, ultraviolet light-induced skin damage, osteoporosis, and other conditions?
Tomatoes are good for your heart, too. They are low in calories, but rich in nutrients like potassium, fiber and the antioxidant lycopene. The lycopene in canned tomatoes, like Hunt’s, is easier for your body to use than from raw tomatoes, and you get seven times more lycopene from canned tomatoes than from the raw version. I thought this was really interesting, since I usually think of fresh being the best.
Because there is a history of heart disease in my husband’s family, when I was asked by Hunt’s and The Motherhood to create a recipe using Hunt’s products, I thought I would dedicate the meal to my husband.
One thing I’ve never tried to make is a homemade spaghetti sauce. I’ve always just grabbed whatever jar of sauce looked the best or what was on sale. But, I thought I would try to make a sauce using Hunt’s tomato products.
Because I’ve never made a sauce before, my friend Ashley from Just Another Mom of 2 shared her recipe with me. I followed her recipe with her notes, except that I used about 1 cup of fresh portabella mushrooms instead of canned.
1 pound lean ground beef
1 large onion, chopped
3-4 cloves garlic, crushed
2 cans (14.5 ounces each) Hunts diced tomatoes with juice
2-4 cans Hunts tomato paste (I used one large & one small to get my desired consistency) & equal amount water
1 cup red wine
1-2 chopped green bell peppers
1 small can sliced mushrooms
1 to 2 tablespoons sugar
2 teaspoons salt, or to taste
2 tsp. basil
2 tsp. oregano
1/2 tsp. pepper (all seasonings can be adjusted to taste)
1/4-1/2 cup Parmesan cheese
First, saute some chopped onion and a clove of minced garlic in some butter or olive oil, about 2 minutes or until you see the onions start to turn translucent. I like to season the ground beef with an Italian seasonings grinder or some similar combination, and then brown the meat. Combine the remaining ingredients in the crockpot; add browned meat and mix well. Cover and cook on low about 7-8 hours.
The result? Delicious! This made enough for a meal for my family of 5, with leftovers for another meal. I’d have a hard time going back to using a jarred sauce after this.
I am working with Hunt’s and The Motherhood on this sponsored post. Tomato facts were provided to me and I am receiving a stipend for this post.
Looks delicious! Thanks for letting us know that canned tomatoes are really good for you…who would have thought? 🙂
Sounds yummy!! I'm horrible at "homemade" anything. Mainly because I never have the time to put in. THiS sounds great though! I'm saving this recipe and gonna try it this week!! YAY!
I'm definitely going to try this. I have made spaghetti sauce before but hadn't thought to try it in the slow cooker. I'm always looking for easy slow cooker meals for the busy days.
I've been wanting to make homemade spaghetti sauce. This sounds awesome!
Lately our favorite recipe with tomatoes is taco soup.
So Yum! My favorite recipes using tomatoes are my aunt's eggplant parmesan (made with her own tomatoes) and, in my crockpot right now, Tortellini Soup! MMmmmmm!
Pasta Caprese!! Penne, Tomatoes, Mozzarella and Basil Mmmmmm
This looks yummy. I always use Hunts spaghetti sauce since it's not so sweet. I did this campaign too! Live recipe opps!
To make the tomato flavour even more intense you can add sundried tomatoes (I buy them in the oil and usually add a couple tablespoons finely chopped). I also add a pinch of cinnamon.
I love adding canned tomatoes to homemade mac and cheese! Yum.
Our recipe is very similar to this one. And it is yummy! Homemade is more work, but the benefits are awesome.
I think I should come by your house for dinner! Yum!
=)
Yum!
Have you tried the diced fire-roasted canned tomatoes?
AHmazing flavor!!
I love recipes with wine..some for the sauce and some for mama…
and we're big fans of homemade sauce here too…my fam's Italian and the hubs is a chef…so I only use jarred stuff if I'm lazy and just feeding the kids…
oh, and bruchetta…yum!
You wrote a recipe?! I only follow them. Sigh 😉
This looks wonderful. Spaghetti is a favorite at my house.
Great recipe! I love making sauce with tomatoes, too. Lately I've been using my husband's own secret recipe and it's awesome. But I can't share it. The day he gave me the recipe, he pointed to it, pointed to me, put a finger over his lips and made a slashing motion across his throat. The man means business. 😉
Oh, how I love homemade sauce! This recipe sounds yummy so I might have to try this one!
Sounds delish! I tend to buy my sauces, too, though there really is nothing like homemade sauce.
YUM!
I make my own Taco Sauce and my own spaghetti sauce…hunts is the only tomato sauce — are you telling me there are others??? Doodles thinks I am a nut job because of my obsession….seriously others taste different. Hunts the best 🙂