Stamp of Approval Spaghetti Sauce

I cut this recipe out of a Taste of Home magazine recently. It looked so good-- which to me is a good enough reason to cut everything out of magazines. I didn't have some of the ingredients like Worcestershire sauce or dried marjoram, but I figured that it would taste fine without. I halved this recipe also since I wasn't going to be serving 12. (I didn't half the seasonings though- gotta love flavor!)

2 pounds ground beef

3/4 pound bulk Italian sausage

4 medium onions, finely chopped

8 garlic cloves, minced

2 cans (14-1/2 ounces each) diced tomatoes, undrained (I put these in the blender for 5 seconds before adding to the sauce)

4 cans (6 ounces each) tomato paste

1/2 cup water

1/4 cup sugar

1/4 cup minced fresh or dried parsley 

2 tablespoons minced fresh basil or 2 teaspoons dried basil

1 tablespoon minced fresh oregano or 1 teaspoon dried oregano

4 bay leaves

1 teaspoon rubbed sage

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon pepper

Hot cooked spaghetti

(1/4 cup of worcestershire sauce and 1/2 tsp of dried marjoram.)

In a Dutch oven, cook the beef, sausage, onions over medium heat until meat is no longer pink. Add garlic; cook 1 minute longer. Drain.

Transfer to a 5-qt. slow cooker. Stir in the tomatoes, tomato paste, water, sugar, Worcestershire sauce, oil and seasonings. Cover and cook on low for 8-10 hours. Discard bay leaves. Serve with spaghetti. Yield: 12 servings (3 quarts).