Homemade Spaghetti Sauce

First, let me say thank you to my brother in law. Without Calvin, I wouldn't have pounds upon pounds of venison to use in my cooking. Sausage, brats, ground venison, steaks. You name it. He shares it. So, thanks Cal! Keep it coming!

I like my spaghetti sauce light on the meat and FULL of veggies. I threw this recipe together using Joelen’s recipe for guidance.

1 lb venison sausage
4-5 lbs brandywine tomatoes (6-8 large ones)
1 zucchini
8 oz. mushrooms
1 large onion
4 cloves garlic
1 red bell pepper
1 C packed fresh basil
1 C fresh packed spinach
1 Tbsp dried Italian herbs

Brown the sausage and set aside, draining any excess liquid.

Bring a large pot of water to boil, but only fill the pot half way full. Blanch the tomatoes, two at a time, by cutting an “X” in the bottom of the tomatoes and then cooking them in the boiling water for 15-30 seconds. Set them aside to cool on a cutting board. When cool enough to the touch, peel the skin from the tomatoes and discard.

Quarter the tomatoes and place them in batches into a blender. Puree until most of the chunks are broken up. Feel free to leave it chunkier or less chunky, depending on your preference.

In a sautee pan, add a little olive oil and sautee the onions and garlic together. Ready your sauce pot(s). I needed two because this sauce produced over 10 cups of finished product.

To the pureed tomatoes, add the venison sausage and sautéed garlic and onions. Chop up the bell pepper, zucchini and mushrooms. Finely slice the basil. Add all of these, plus the spinach and dried herbs to the pot.

Simmer for at least three hours or until the sauce reduces and thickens.

Serve however you’d like! I froze this in two heaping ladle increments, which produced 6 freezer bags worth of sauce.