How to Jazz up that Jar of Spaghetti Sauce

So you're interested in getting jazzy with your store-bought spaghetti sauce? Good, because I've got some lip-smacking ideas here that your family and dinner guests will LOVE.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Cooking supplies: pot, collander, stove, stirring utensils
• Set table
• Store-bought sauce (26-32 oz jar or can)
• 1 or 2 oz red wine
• 2 lbs. ground beef
• Italian herb mixture
• OPTIONAL: bay leaf

1. 
    
   thawed beef

   In large, 10-to-12 inch skillet, brown and drain ground beef while pasta cooks on another burner. Make sure your beef is thawed out before you cook it to conserve energy and get best results. If you have to first thaw it out in the microwave, go ahead and put it in a microwave-safe dish and thaw it according to your microwave's directions.

2. 
    
   red wine

   Return drained meat to skillet, adding wine, herbs, and bay leaf (if you can let it all simmer for hours, otherwise hold off on the bay leaf this time).

3. 
    
   strain pasta

   When the pasta is done cooking, strain it in the sink. Some people suggest running HOT water over the pasta to get some of the starch off it and keep the pasta from sticking.

4. 
    

   Spoon sauce over pasta for each guest. Finish the rest of the wine by serving that along with the meal! Bon Appetit!

Tips & Warnings

• Feel free to use ground turkey, chicken, veal or beef (or mixture thereof) in place of ground beef. I use the 80/20 beef, myself.
• Whatever red wine you have on hand will work fine
• Try a different pasta, maybe cork screws or rigatoni noodles to switch it up
• serve with garlic bread and side salad

[lucindaroth]

on 1/11/2009 Cool ideas

[Rachellewms]

on 12/19/2008 Mmmmm...Sounds really good. I think I'll make spaghetti tonight.

[vallain]

on 12/18/2008 You might want to try my very-vegetarian pasta sauce sometime.

[lindsey23]

on 11/30/2008 Good article! I love finding new ways to make pasta sauce better.

[mizchulita]

on 11/22/2008 These are great ideas! One of the things that I also use is the ground soy meat as a sub for the hamburger.