Hey dolls!
Lately life around here has been so insane. So, sometimes trying to find time to cook a home made dinner is out of the question. With Charlotte now walking and getting into everything, it’s hard to find time to cook an outstanding dinner. John also doesn’t get home until around six lately. By the time he does get home he is starving! So most nights lately we have eaten out or just cooked something super fast. Today Charlotte had to go back to the doctor for her second flu shot. Guess what is down the road from her doctor? Starbucks! I can do just about anything with a little espresso in me! So on the way home I decided to make dinner tonight. But, it would have to be something easy, since Miss Char doesn’t sit still for long!
When I got home I did an inventory of the food in my house and decided on spaghetti. John and Charlotte both love it so spaghetti it was! I am fairly certain in my past life I was a full blooded Italian woman! If I had to eat one thing for the rest of my life it would be pasta. It doesn’t matter which noodle or sauce, I love them all.
Tonight I thought I would switch it up a bit and use hot Italian sausage instead of beef. John loves spicy food so I thought this would be perfect. Although I had to leave that part out for Char, but that was simple. All of the products I used are from Winn Dixie. I love me some Winn Dixie! They always have great prices and sales! And you can’t beat the fuel perks program they have. I’ll absolutely miss Winn Dixie if we ever move out of the south. For my midwest peeps Schnucks is comparable to Winn Dixie. P.S. -I made this dinner for less than $25, maybe even under $20.
I started by putting Char in her high chair, turning on the radio and giving her some snacks to keep her busy!
Then I chopped the peppers, onion and cut the casing off of the sausage. You can buy hot Italian sausage ground up, but sometimes you just have to work with what you got.
By this time John had arrived home from work. It was great timing since Char was not happy with being stuck in her high chair anymore!
After everything was ready I heated a large saucepan with the olive oil and tossed in the garlic, onions and peppers. In another saucepan, I cooked the sausage until the meat was no longer pink and broke it up into smaller pieces. Once the vegetables were tender, I added the tomato paste, canned tomatoes, and tomato sauce. I started with just one can of tomatoes but ended up adding another because it made for a better sauce to meat ratio.
After mixing all the vegetables, tomatoes, and sauce together it was time to add the sausage. At this point the water for my pasta was boiling as well. I just follow the directions on the package for the pasta. Easy enough.
Once the pasta was done it was time to eat! Place a bed of pasta, add the sauce, and top with parmesan cheese.
I think Char likes spaghetti just because of the mess it makes. Of course Bella and Fogel were circling like vultures just hoping for some to fall!
Spaghetti Sauce Recipe
Ingredients
8 ounces uncooked spaghetti
1 (1-lb.) package hot Italian sausage, casings removed
1 medium onion, chopped
1 medium-size green bell pepper, chopped
1 medium-size yellow bell pepper, chopped
1 medium-size red, chopped
2 to 3 tbsp garlic cloves, minced
2 tablespoon olive oil
2 (14.5-oz.) can diced tomatoes with basil, garlic, and oregano( Italian style)
1 (6-oz.) can tomato pasta
1 (25-oz.) jar tomato basil sauce
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
Renée says
Looks so yummy and delish! I’m always looking for easy quick recipes so this is perfect! Thanks for sharing 🙂
Renée
Renée says
whoops spelt my blog address wrong
mommyrenaaye.blogspot.com
🙂