Slow-Cooker Spaghetti Sauce

Another work week, another slow-cooker adventure!  Last week, I tackled Spaghetti Sauce.

In truth, this is a lazy post as 1) I made this last week, pre-ren-fest, and 2) I have made this before and am breaking no culinary boundaries for myself.

Sloth aside, I stand behind this as a fast (and easy!) recipe.  In fact, I've wanted to share it on the blog for some time, but haven't had the time or ability to make it.

I have spoken before on the wonder that is the Whole Foods website.  This recipe comes from them,
and of all slow cooker recipes, this may be the easiest form--gather ingredients, put in a slow cooker in the morning, and leave it be.  When dinner time comes around, skim the surface of the pot for excess oil, make a salad and boil some pasta.  No kidding, this four steps.

This is the whole thing, pre-cooked.

Hacks: First, the recipe calls for breaking the sausage into thirds, but this time I tried smaller cuts, and it made little meatballs--I would not recommend this. It was interesting, but too uniform and I fear some of the little meatballs did not cook all the way through. The sauce also tasted different than in the  past, and I think it's important that the sausage cook a little more loose for flavor. If meat is not your thing, one could probably omit the sausage and still retain flavor, it would just be a different flavor, of course.  Also, if sausage is not your thing, one could use lean hamburger meat--something I am interested in trying with this recipe, making it once with pre-browning the meat and once without.  Past experience would lead me to believe that beef needs to be browned beforehand, as the slow cooker does not get hot enough to cook it correctly.

This is "the" easy slow cooker meal that keeps on giving, as one could do much with leftover sauce--pizza, lasagna, manicotti, even a make-shift meatball sandwich.  The versatility of this recipe makes it a great early-to-mid-week dish to make, as you can reuse it later in the work week or the weekend, and make it feel like an all new dish.  This recipe is close to my heart, as I love re-purposing leftovers, both from a fiscal and creative standpoint.

"I'm ready for some pasta!"

Enjoy!