Homemade Enchilada or Taco Sauce

I make a BIG batch of this and either can or freeze it.  It’s wooooonderful!  We eat it in enchiladas, over tacos, burritos, etc.  The smell as it’s cooking is simply divine.    🙂

Very easy to make!

2 tablespoons olive oil
1 small onion, chopped
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
2-3 teaspoons chili powder
1/2 teaspoon dried basil
1-2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 heaping tablespoon minced garlic (love garlic!)
1 – 8oz can tomato sauce
1 cup water
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper

Saute onions in oil, add spices and garlic and cook for a couple of minutes. Add other ingredients and simmer on low for at least 30-45 minutes. Stir occasionally to make sure it doesn’t stick. Adjust seasonings to your taste. If you like really hot food, you could add red pepper flakes to this too. (I like a little spice, but not heat!)

I process this in my blender after it cools (kiddo doesn’t like onions), and the consistency is excellent.

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Creamy Chicken Enchiladas

1 – recipe of my enchilada sauce
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 – 8oz container sour cream

Mix this well. Reserve about 2 cups for sauce – set aside. To the remaining mixture, add:

2 cups cooked, cubed chicken breast
1 cup shredded cheese (we like cheddar best) (you’ll need 2 cups of cheese total – see below)

Mix well. Spoon about 1/4 cup of mixture into 12 flour tortillas. Roll tortillas and place seam side down into a 9×13 pan. (Preheat oven to 350 degrees.)

To the reserved mixture, add 1/4 cup milk for sauce. Stir until smooth. Spoon sauce over the top of the enchiladas. Top with 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese. Cover pan with foil and bake for 30-35 minutes until hot and bubbly.

Makes 12 enchiladas. YUM! 😀

(Please note – this is an original recipe by me, and may not be posted elsewhere or sold in a collection. Copyrighted by me, 2008 to current.)

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Homemade Spaghetti Sauce

I’m going to post the small batch recipe which will work for one meal, and also the large batch that I normally make.  I figure it takes just as much time to make the large batch as it does the small one, and it saves time later.   😛

The sauce cans and freezes beautifully, and I use it for spaghetti or any other pasta dish, as pizza sauce, a dipping sauce for breadsticks, etc.  I don’t add hamburger meat until I’m ready to serve.  If you decide to go ahead and add the meat and you’re making the large batch, just be sure to pressure can unless you freeze it.

This is so good, you won’t ever go back to Ragu.  😀

SMALL BATCH:

2 – 15oz cans tomato sauce
1 – 6oz can tomato paste
1 tablespoon parsley
1 heaping tablespoon minced garlic
1/8 cup olive oil (I don’t measure – just use enough to saute the onions)
1/2 cup chopped onion (or more)
1 teaspoon salt (more or less – cook for a while and then adjust to your taste)
1 1/2 teaspoon basil
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 teaspoon ground oregano
1/2 to 1 cup water (more or less – depends on the thickness you prefer)

OPTIONAL INGREDIENTS:
2 – 16oz cans whole tomatoes
2 tablespoons sugar
mushrooms
2 pounds ground hamburger, cooked and drained

Simmer onions in olive oil until translucent, add other ingredients and let simmer until you’re ready to serve. (Simmer at least 2 to 4 hours – crockpot works great for this!)

Now – if you love pasta as much as I do, this next batch is for you:

LARGE BATCH:

You’ll need a BIG pot – I use my 6 quart stainless.

1 – large #10 can (105 oz) tomato sauce
4 – 6oz cans tomato paste
4 tablespoons parsley
4 heaping tablespoons minced garlic
1/4 cup olive oil (I don’t measure – just use enough to saute the onions)
2 cups chopped onion (or more)
1/2 to 1 tablespoon salt (more or less – cook for a while and then adjust to your taste)
4 1/2 teaspoons basil
3/4 teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon ground oregano
3 cups water

3 to 6 tablespoons sugar – some cans of tomato sauce are a little sweeter and require less sugar – every batch is different (you can even leave the sugar out completely if you want – we like just a touch of sugar to cut the acidity of the tomato)

Simmer onions in olive oil until translucent, add other ingredients and let simmer until you’re ready to serve. (Simmer at least 2 to 4 hours.  If your crockpot is big enough, you might get all of this in there!)

Kiddo doesn’t like pieces of onion in anything, but loves the flavor, so I puree the onions after sauteing.

I also normally add a few dashes of Cavender’s Greek Seasoning and some garlic powder to this as well (we love garlic!).   It’s cheaper to make a big batch, and it tastes so much better than the commercial stuff!

Enjoy!  😀

Note: To feed 100 people, we multiply the large batch by 5 and use 15-20 pounds or so of spaghetti.  Course, that takes into consideration they’ll eat a salad and garlic bread along with it.  🙂

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