Grandma Haack's Authentic Italian Spaghetti Sauce


If you want Authentic Italian, here you go. My "Grandma GG", Anntoinette Jannetta Haack's, parents were born in Italy and she made this sauce all the years that she was a mother. She is 94 now and still going strong! She still makes this sauce.
As a child, my grandfather would "taste" the sauce all day, dipping bread into it and occasionally sneaking a chunk of Italian sausage out of the pot. Use nothing but the best and freshest ingredients for the sauce to taste right. Use the sauce over any type of noodles (homemade or fresh pasta is best), for a special pan of lasagna, for chicken Parmesan, you get the point.

Authentic Italian Spaghetti Sauce
Antoinette Jannetta Haack

Day 1

8-10 oz. round steak, pounded to about 1/4 inch thin
2 bunches Italian parsley, chopped, divided
4-6 cloves fresh garlic, minced
salt & pepper to taste
1 lb. hot or mild Italian sausage
2 28 oz. cans crushed tomatoes
1 28 oz. can petite diced tomatoes
handful of torn fresh basil

Place one handful chopped Italian parsley, garlic, salt and pepper in center of piece of steak. You may also use two smaller pieces of steak, each pounded thin and make two rolls if you can't find a piece large enough. Roll up steak tightly and secure with skewers, toothpicks or cloth twine. Sear on all sides in a skillet over med-high heat. Place in bottom of crock pot.

Slice sausage into 3/4 inch pieces and cook in skillet over medium heat until done. Be cautious not to over cook them or get them too dark on the outside. Put crushed and diced tomatoes and basil in pot over the steak. Put sausage in as well. Stir carefully paying attention not to disturb the steak in the bottom.

Meatballs :
1 1/2 cups Italian bread crumbs
1/2 c. Parmesan cheese
2 eggs
2 lbs. quality ground beef
salt & pepper to taste

In large mixing bowl, place other bunch of parsley, bread crumbs, eggs, raw ground beef and salt/pepper. Mix (your hands work best) until well combined. Roll into balls about the size of a small walnut, about 1 1/2 inch in diameter. Brown meatballs in skillet over medium heat, making sure they don't get too dark, until they are mostly done. Dab with paper towel or drain in colander. Put these into the sauce too, covered in tomato sauce.

Cook sauce in crock pot on high for 8 hours, uncovered, adding water if needed throughout the day. Let cool to room temperature, cover and place in refrigerator overnight.

Day 2

Heat sauce back up in crock pot for 6-8 hours, uncovered.
Once warm, add one small can of Contandina tomato paste plus 2-3 cans of water. Stir until well incorporated. The sauce may require additional water throughout the day. It should be a dark, rich color and most of the sausage and steak should be dissolved from cooking so long.

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