Spaghetti with Meat Sauce

Ingredients

• ¾ pound lean ground beef 

• 2 14 ½-ounce cans of diced tomatoes 

• 1 small green pepper, cut into small pieces 

• 1 small onion, cut into small pieces 

• 2 garlic cloves, cut into tiny pieces* 

• 1 teaspoon dried oregano, crushed* 

• 1 teaspoon black pepper* 

• 1 pound whole-wheat spaghetti, uncooked (or your favorite pasta) 

* You can use 1 Tablespoon of Italian seasoning instead of these three ingredients.

Directions

1. Wash your hands well with soap and hot water. 
2. Turn the eye of the stove to medium heat. Preheat the skillet. 
3. Add the ground beef to the skillet. Stir the beef as it cooks to break it into crumbles. This will take about 5 minutes. 
4. Drain the fat from the cooked ground beef. 
5. Add the tomatoes with their juice, green pepper, onion, garlic, oregano, and black pepper (or Italian seasoning) to the skillet with the ground beef. 
6. Stir to mix the sauce ingredients together. 
7. Bring the sauce to a boil. 
8. Turn the heat to low. Cover the skillet with a lid. 
9. Let the sauce simmer for about 15 minutes, stirring occasionally. 
10. While the sauce cooks, cook the spaghetti in a large pot of boiling water, using the directions on the package. 
11. When the spaghetti is done, drain it in a colander or strainer and place a serving of it on each plate. Top the spaghetti with the sauce and serve. 
12. Refrigerate leftovers within 2 hours.