Recipe(tried): Sunday Dinner at Our House - Spaghetti Sauce Alabama-Style, Crock Pot Pork, Pork Fried Rice

Hi! Yesterday we had TERRIBLE weather. We needed the drenching rain, but the thunder and lightning we could have done without! A tree down the road fell on the power lines. The entire eastern section of town, which includes the hospital, was without power for 7 hours. It was a L O N G seven hours!

Luckily, I had decided to cook some food to put in the freezer so most of my Sunday Dinner was done on Saturday night!

We had: Spaghetti Sauce--Alabama Style, spaghetti, zipper cream peas, Honey-Walnut Bread (from the breadmaker), CLAUSSEN Pickles, raspberry jello with fruit, and Mama's Banana Cupcakes.

I admire the pioneers who lived without water, electricity, etc.. However, I am completely "lost" when our power goes out!

Here are the "investment cooking" recipes. I hope that y'all enjoy them.

SPAGHETTI SAUCE--ALABAMA STYLE

1 lb. ground Italian sausage
1 lb. ground round
2 cans Del Monte Spaghetti Sauce, any flavor that your family likes
3 onions, chopped
2-3 bell peppers--red, yellow, or green, chopped
6 cloves garlic, minced
2 Tbsp. olive oil
1 (8 oz.) pkg. mushrooms, sliced
4-5 large tomatoes, peeled and chopped
1/2 cup red wine
1 can cream of mushroom soup--98% fat-free
2 cans beef broth
2 pkgs. Good Seasonings Italian Salad Dressing Mix

Place olive oil in a LARGE pot. Add ground beef and ground sausage. Allow the meat mixture to get almost done. Add the mushrooms, onions, bell peppers, and garlic. Cook until the onions are translucent and the meat is done. Add the tomatoes, red wine, beef broth, canned spaghetti sauce, cream of mushroom soup, and the salad dressing mix. Mix thoroughly. Simmer on the lowest setting for 2-3 hours. Serve over spaghetti.

This mixture will make about 6 quarts. After the sauce has cooled, ladle into ZipLoc freezing bags, and put them in the freezer horizontally. You should have enough sauce leftover for 3-4 different meals.

CROCKPOT PORK

1 (5-6 lb.) Boston butt
1/2 cup orange juice
1/4 cup lime juice
3 onions, chopped
8 cloves garlic, minced
2 bell peppers, chopped
Seasoned salt
Pepper
6 Tbsp. raspberry vinegar
1 1/2 cups-2 cups water

Spray the crockpot with PAM. Place the onions, bell peppers, and garlic on the bottom. Place the Boston butt on top of the vegetables. Mix the orange juice, lime juice, raspberry vinegar, and water together. Pour over the Boston butt. Season with seasoned salt and pepper. Let cook on HIGH for 6-7 hour or on LOW for 10-12.

Remove the roast from the crockpot and put it in a casserole dish. Refrigerate. Pour the liquid from the pork roast into a sieve. Place a large bowl under the sieve because there will be a LOT of liquid. Put this liquid in a casserole dish and refrigerate.

The next day, remove the roast from the refrigerator and put all of the lean meat into a microwave-safe bowl. Throw all of the fat away. Remove the casserole containing the liquid from the refrigerator and scrape the fat off of the top.

To serve the meat, place one bottle of barbecue sauce, 1/4 cup water, and 1/4 cup lemonade concentrate together. Pour over meat and microwave on 50 power for 15 minutes, making sure that the bowl is covered with plastic wrap. Serve on buns.
Leftovers can be frozen in 1 qt. bags.

PORK "FRIED" RICE

5 cups liquid from pork roast--if there isn't five cups, put the pork liquid into a measuring cup and fill the measuring cup with water until you have five cups
2 cups Uncle Ben's Rice
Dash of salt

Place the liquid/water mixture into a microwave-safe bowl and microwave on full power for 18 minutes. Add rice and salt and stir. Microwave on high power for 18 minutes or until the rice is done and the liquid has been absorbed.

Happy Sunday!