How to do a spaghetti feed

Today, I helped Crete Berean and the Crete Ministerial Association with a spaghetti feed. The goal was a fundraiser for Crete Cares where a number of churches in Crete pool resources to help take care of some of their citizens in need. We fed about 150 people over the course of an hour and a half.

Shopping list:

18 - 32oz cans of crushed tomato or tomato puree ( I used about half of each)
18 - 12oz cans of tomato paste
15 - medium white onions
500 ml of extra virgin olive oil
3 - large bulbs of garlic
3 lbs. of Italian sausage ( just enough to add some flavor)
1/4 cup of red balsamic vinegar

Spices - basil, oregano, crushed red pepper, salt, pepper, bay leaves, and sugar

25 lbs. of pasta (I use Barilla - thick spaghetti)

(Salt for water, extra 750 mL of e.v.o.o. to keep pasta from sticking)

You will need a kitchen big enough to do some serious cooking, two large roasting pans and several 10 gallon stock pots. You will also need about 3-6 helpers.

I made the sauce yesterday. Chop half of the onions. Saute (low and slow)  in olive oil with a little salt and 1/4 cup of sugar. Let get carmel color and soft. Add half of the balsamic vinegar and half of the garlic peeled and chopped. Saute for another two minutes.

Open half of the cans of tomatoes and put into roaster (start with paste so it splatters less) add half a can of water for each can of puree or crushed tomatoes. Add in sugar, salt, basil, oregano, red pepper, and bay leaves to taste. Stir with wooden spoon until well blended and consistent in thickness.  Add in cooked onions with out draining. Stir more.

Cook half of sausage in saute pan and pour into sauce without draining. stir, stir stir! Repeat for second batch. Simmer on 200 degrees for at least 8 hours stirring every so often.

Follow directions for pasta as on box - 5 lbs pasta per stock pot (it will take a long time to get that amount of water up to boil; also it will take longer to cook, so begin to check at prescribed time). Drain and pour a little Olive oil on pasta after putting into a large bowl to serve. Assembly line serving - two people on pasta and plate, one on sauce! Enjoy!