Thursday, July 26, 2007

Gina's sneaky spaghetti sauce recipe.

After my surgery, lots of Loops Troops brought me yummy dinners (thank you, thank you!). Barbara's brisket was to die for, as were the salad, bread and brownies. And Gina's spaghetti sauce - well, I was instantly hooked. Like Gina, I think I could eat spaghetti every day of the year. But her sauce was so rich and so delicious, I had to share the recipe with you faithful blog readers. I call it "sneaky" because you sneak in extra veggies and your kids will never be the wiser!

Here's the recipe:
Saute onion with 1 lb. hamburger and 1 lb. spicy Italian sausage.
Add two 28-oz cans diced tomoatoes, 1 small can tomato sauce, 2 small cans tomato paste.
Finely dice a couple of peeled carrots and a seeded red bell pepper in your food processor, and add to the pot.
Also add 2-3 cloves minced garlic, 2 tablespoons brown sugar, some basil, oregano, salt, a dash of nutmeg. Gina also adds some fennel and red pepper flakes. I added some fresh black pepper.

Try it - you will love it! It makes a big batch - enough for two family meals - but there is none left for me to take a picture of :)

So instead...I would like to discuss my youngest child's acquisition problem. Despite our best teachings and her attendance at a school that highly values the environment, this child feels a strong need to own every freakin' plastic house for every concievable kind of collectible plastic junk toy that every evil toymaker has ever dreamed up. Littlest Pet Shop - need I say more? We work to curb her "collecting" but having 3 sets of doting grandparents who feel the need to shower her in the beloved plastic junk does not help.

She does recognize the value of money (money = more plastic crap!); however, Gina Y. recently asked how M. gets her cash, and she answered "I find it." No loose change is safe. The other day she was counting up her collected change and I noticed she had quite a pile. She was quick to point out, "I'm not sure where that twenty came from." Guess where it came from? The floor - underneath her daddy's shorts he threw on the couch.

So I had to take a picture the other day when I happened by this lovely plastic Barbie (not sure of her name, but I'm guessing Casino Barbie, B-movie Barbie or simply, as I have titled the photo, BarbieHo):

And next to Barbie, my little darling had created her own version of what every BarbieHo surely needs most of all:

That's right! Barbie Munee! Painstakenly drawn, colored and cut tiny little twenties.

(If you have any munee, please feel free to come acquire some lovely yarn this weekend. We have lots of it.)

- Shelley
shop online at loopsknitting.com
P.S. Have you checked out the number of comments on the Doggy Days of Summer Giveaway post! We are over 146 comments and counting! Check it out - the giveaway happens tomorrow night!

6 Comments:

Anonymous Anonymous said...

I do feel for you, I happen to have 1million and one Polly Pockets in my home. Most in the vacuum I think. lol Well we are slaveing away at the yarn and should have it to you soon. Thanks Stacy w/ Tempted Yarns

July 26, 2007 at 6:39 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Gina Hills' spaghetti sauce IS to die for!!!
I am happy to know we will be getting more Tempted sock yarn...thanks Stacy for the update!
Gina Y.

July 26, 2007 at 9:28 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

What a fun story to read this morning. My toy nightmare was beanie babies (now living in the attic).

I've added Gina's ingredients to my shopping list. Yum!

Now I'm off to check the floors and pockets around here so I'll be ready when the new shipment of Tempted sock yarn arrives....
Loretta

July 27, 2007 at 4:15 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

I saw a sock in Trekking on Aunt Sherry's needles... green, pink, blue wide stripes... I want some of that!!

How about duct tape, masking tape, sticks, acorns and pine cones, all in some sort of state of assemblage? At least your Hector the Collector choses items that can go into your world famous garage sales!

-Elizabeth

July 27, 2007 at 4:49 AM  
Blogger Jules said...

Loved this story!LOL:)

And the spaghetti sauce sounds to die for. I recently made some of my aunt's recipe using beef boullion/water to my already done meat/onions & let it cook down. The meat had TEN TIMES the flavor.

Oh & with three boys at our house, it's legos. LITTLE TINY EXPENSIVE LEGO MEN. Star Wars ones to be exact.;)

July 27, 2007 at 8:46 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Ahh...at our house, it's the crap that comes with the Happy Meal. Of course, we don't eat at McDonald's enough for Ian to get a full set of anything, so it's odds and ends of plastic crap that reeks of french fry oil.

He does find the electronic games to be especially helpful when he's grounded from his GameBoy, though. :-)

Billie Anne

July 27, 2007 at 11:22 AM  

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