Michael's Spaghetti or Lasagna Sauce

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Michael says he won his bride with this awesome recipe. This recipe makes 16 – 20 large servings, so start with a large pot. The sauce freezes very well and makes an excellent quick dinner for working folk.  The first time you prepare a meal with the sauce, count the number of ladles you use and put an equal amount into freezer containers.  After the first meal, there are usually about 8 containers of three servings each for later use. Serve with whole grain pasta.

The surprisingly awesome nutrition facts are at Calorie Count.
Michael's Spaghetti/Lasagna Sauce
Ingredients:                         1/4 cup good olive oil1/4 stick of butter or margarine      4 – 5 large garlic cloves, minced   1 large onion (or 2 med.) chopped4 small cans mushroom stems and pieces, drained2  28-oz. cans crushedtomatoes  5  6-oz. cans unsaltedtomato sauce2 12-oz cans tomato paste1  6-oz. can water(use a tomato sauce can)3/4 cup of good burgundy wine (never use “cooking” wine)1/2 cup dried parsley flakes1 Tbsp. granulated beef bouillon1/4 cup dried oregano leaves                                1 packed Tbsp. of brown sugar3 Tbsp. dried basil                                                                1/3 cup grated parmesan cheese             1/2 tsp. garlic salt                                                     1/2 tsp. fresh ground black pepper2 tsp. salta pinch of cayenne pepper1 tsp. ground celery seed3 lbs. lean ground beef1/2 tsp. each EXTRA pepper and garlic powder used whenbrowning the beef
Directions:
Heat the olive oil and margarine or butter in the pot, andsweat the onion and garlic until transparent. Add all tomato ingredients, water, mushrooms, and wine.  Stir until blended.  Add all the dry ingredients, includingparmesan cheese, and blend.  Cover andset aside on low heat, gradually bringing to a slow boil.
In a separate pot, brown the ground beef with a bit ofoil.  As it cooks, sprinkle in an EXTRA1/2 tsp. of garlic powder and an EXTRA 1/2 tsp. of black pepper.  Once the meat is brown, DRAIN IT THOROUGHLYor the sauce will be oily.  Then add thedrained meat to the sauce.
Cover the meat/sauce mixture and simmer for at least threehours, stirring occasionally to keep it from sticking to the bottom of the pot. Taste and adjust seasonings.
Notes:
Hereare several things I do that are optional, but which I believe add to theflavor:
Before adding the mushrooms, take the time to mince one ofthe cans of stems and pieces.  This givesa uniform mushroom flavor to the sauce.
Sliced fresh mushrooms can improve the appearance of thesauce.  If you elect to use them, lightlysauté about 1/2 to 3/4 of a lb. with the onion and garlic, rather than addingthem later on.
Just after draining the ground beef, return it briefly tothe browning pot, add a generous splash of burgundy and mix for an additionalminute or so before adding the beef to the sauce mixture.)