Ingredient Of The Week - Spaghetti Sauce

Yes, I know, that is a wierd ingredient. How did we get on the subject?

Last week I decided to take three boring store-bought cans of spaghetti sauce, spice them up with my own ingredients, and then freeze them in jars to use later. A great plan, eh? Well, in the process, the spaghetti sauce got used for a variety of different (and unusual) recipes... so I thought I'd share them here!!!! :o)

First of all, how did I renovate the sauce? Well, I added things of course!!!! I added garlic & herb seasoning (I add that to almost everything), fresh chives from my garden, a bit of frozen spinach chopped finely, a bunch of chopped mushrooms, a bit of grated carrots to thicken up the sauce, and... hmm... I think that's all. OH!!!! I also fried some ground turkey and added it. Much healthier than hamburger I think, and not too much different taste-wise by the time all the spices and veggies are added in.

Suddenly, after adding the ingredients, I realized two very important things:

"Whoa... there is WAY too much meat for this sauce!"
"CRAP! I have nothing for James & I to take to work to eat tomorrow!"

Remembering that we had tortillas in the freezer, I decided to try a food experiment:

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Pizza Quesadilla:

Spaghetti sauce
2 Tortillas (I used regular flour tortillas.)
Shredded cheese (I used cheddar & monterey jack)
Fried hamburger or ground turkey
Optional: pepperoni

First, spray a large skillet with Pam and put on low heat. (I use setting #3 on my electric stove). While the pan is heating, lay one tortilla down on the table and spread some spaghetti sauce evenly over it (I didn't use a lot, since James is not a major tomato-flavor lover.) Toss some meat on it, cover with lots of cheese and pepperoni if you choose... put the other tortilla on top, and CAREFULLY carry it to the skillet. (I can't even count how many times the toppings have at least partially fallen out when I wasn't paying attention as I walked.)

Put the quesadilla in the skillet. Brown lightly, and then CAREFULLY turn it over (with a HUGE turner, the biggest one you own. Or, if you are like me and don't mind severe burns on your fingers, or constantly forget where you laid the turner, try and do it with your fingers.) Brown lightly on the other side, and then cut into pieces with a pizza cutter. It should look something like this:

And it tasted SO. AMAZINGLY. YUMMY. I had to force myself to stop eating so there would be some left for work the next day lol!

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Unfortunately, I was so excited about making the spaghetti sauce and blending the flavors, that I simmered it a bit to long, until it was really too thick to use for spaghetti sauce.

So what did I do with it? Well, most of it I put in containers to freeze, and use later as tomato paste for homemade pizzas! And then, an idea struck me:

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Tortilla Pizzas:

Tortillas (I used regular wheat tortillas for this, and they were PERFECT! They turned out crunchier than using the flour, and SO TASTY!)
Shredded cheese (I used cheddar & monterey jack)
Optional: Fried hamburger or ground turkey
Optional: pepperoni
Optional: other pizza toppings you like

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.

Take the desired number of tortillas and spread spaghetti sauce evenly on them. Add whatever toppings you choose, throw some cheese on top, and bake until the cheese is nice and melted (about 15 minutes, I think?) When you're done, they will look like this:

James gave this one rave reviews, and I'm sure it will be made often in the future!
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These may not be the healthiest of recipes, but they are a great alternative to the WAY UNHEALTHY options for quick meals I would normally go for when I needed a fast meal for our supper or lunches! Also, I had a lot of fun making the spaghetti healthier without changing the taste much!