By The recipe Sunday was zippy spaghetti sauce — a punchier version of marinara, with red pepper flakes, garlic, oregano, and a small splash of vodka. The vodka cooks off and rounds out the tomato acidity. Total: $5.40 for three meals.
The recipe is below.
Zippy Spaghetti Sauce
Prep Time: 5 min | Cook Time: 25 min | Total Time: 30 min | Servings: 6
Ingredients
- 1 lb ground beef (or Italian sausage)
- 1 small yellow onion, diced
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 (24 oz) jar marinara or crushed tomato sauce
- 1 (14.5 oz) can diced tomatoes, undrained
- 1 tsp red pepper flakes (adjust to taste)
- 1 tsp Italian seasoning
- 1/2 tsp sugar
- Salt and black pepper to taste
- 1 lb spaghetti, cooked according to package directions
- Parmesan cheese, for serving (optional)
Instructions
- Brown the meat. In a large skillet or saucepan over medium-high heat, cook the ground beef and diced onion together, breaking the meat into crumbles, until no pink remains — about 7 to 8 minutes. Drain excess fat.
- Add garlic. Stir in the minced garlic and cook for 1 minute until fragrant.
- Build the sauce. Pour in the jarred marinara and the diced tomatoes. Stir in the red pepper flakes, Italian seasoning, sugar, salt, and pepper.
- Simmer. Reduce heat to medium-low and let the sauce simmer uncovered for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally, until slightly thickened and the flavors meld.
- Serve. Spoon over cooked spaghetti and top with Parmesan if you have it. Eat while it’s hot, even if that means standing at the counter.
Nutrition (per serving)
Calories: 420 | Protein: 24g | Fat: 12g | Carbs: 54g | Fiber: 4g | Sodium: 620mg