Blackstrap molasses vs. regular

DEAR HELOISE » I’m having a debate with my mother-in-law concerning blackstrap molasses and regular molasses. She says they are not the same thing, but I think they are the same thing. Which of us is correct?

Light or regular molasses is produced after the second boiling. Blackstrap molasses is what comes from a third boiling, and it’s very bitter. You’ll usually see it used in baked beans or barbecue sauce.

Italian spaghetti sauce

DEAR HELOISE » We remodeled our kitchen this year, and somehow, someway my little book with all of my favorite recipes went missing. Your spaghetti sauce was in there. And now that the weather has gotten so cold, my husband has been asking me to make spaghetti again. Would you please reprint that for us spaghetti lovers?

— Dorothy S., Muskegon,

Michigan ¼ cup olive oil

½ cup butter

1 cup finely chopped onions

1 pound ground beef

4 strips bacon, finely chopped

4 cloves garlic, chopped fine

3 tablespoons finely chopped parsley

1 bay leaf, chopped fine

1 tablespoon salt

Freshly ground pepper to taste

1 teaspoon crushed dry red pepper

2 ounces red wine

2 15-ounce cans whole tomatoes or tomato sauce

1 small can tomato paste

1 cup water

1 finely chopped carrot

Heat olive oil over low heat in a pot large enough to hold all ingredients. Add butter and simmer until melted. Add onions and saute until lightly browned. Add ground beef and bacon; saute until browned, stirring occasionally.

Add garlic, parsley, bay leaf, salt, black pepper and red pepper. Cook over low heat for 10 minutes. Add wine, cover and “steam” for a few minutes more.

Add tomatoes or tomato sauce, paste and water. Bring the mixture to a boil and add the chopped carrot. Cover and cook over very low heat for an hour, stirring occasionally. Serve over your favorite pasta.

If you enjoy this spaghetti sauce recipe, you’ll find more such ideas in my pamphlet “Heloise’s Main Dishes and More.” To get a copy, just go to Heloise.com, or send $3 along with a stamped, self-addressed, long envelope to: Heloise/Main Dishes, P.O. Box 795001, San Antonio, TX 782795001.

With colder weather here, you’ll find a number of tasty, easy-tomake dishes in my pamphlet that are sure to please the whole family.

From concentrate

DEAR HELOISE » What exactly does “made from concentrate” mean?

— Ella A., Anchorage, Alaska