Back to School Dinners Made Easy with Ragu Homestyle Sauces- #Review and #Giveaway

Image may contain: drink, food and indoor

Thank you to Ragu for providing me with product in exchange for my honest review. All thoughts and opinions shared below are my own.

Well, we have been back to school for two weeks now, and I am happy to report that things are going well. Both girls have wonderful teachers and I am enjoying the quiet that allows me to get some work done during the day. The only (small) struggle we have experienced is dealing with both back to school and weekday soccer games while trying to make sure we are eating moderately healthy dinners together. It's not so bad when it's my night to cook, but when it's one of the girls' nights to cook (we've been having them contribute a few times a week and it has been amazing) and there is a game, the temptation to just grab fast food is strong. Thankfully, we found a way to make things easier using Ragu Homestyle Sauces.

Ragu is celebrating 80 years of bringing families together for pasta night, and makes a great dinner everyone will love, especially the kids! From traditional pasta recipes to new favorites, a Ragu dinner sets the stage for families to talk about all of their exciting back to schools stories. Ragu's Homestyle line has several delicious sauce styles; Mushroom, Meat, Traditional, Roasted Garlic, and Four Cheese!

We had the opportunity to try both the traditional and mushroom sauces from the Ragu's Homestyle line and we put them to good use!

R was so excited to make dinner using Ragu's Homestyle Thick and Hearty Traditional Sauce

R used our first jar of Ragu to make dinner. She decided to make spaghetti and meatballs using Ragu's Homestyle Thick and Hearty Traditional Sauce and some frozen meatballs. This meal was not only quick and easy (which is perfect for a school night dinner), it was absolutely delicious! We tend to prefer Grams' homemade sauce, but the Ragu sauce was fantastic!

R loved every step of dinner making, especially pouring the sauce into the pot

D gives this meal her approval!

I used our second jar this past Friday. D had a soccer game, so I was looking for something easy to throw into the slow cooker, using the chicken thighs I just bought from the store. I found this great recipe for Crockpot Chicken Cacciatore, but ended up not having two of the key ingredients (namely the tomato paste and mushrooms). I almost scrapped my plans, when I noticed the jar of Ragu Homestyle Thick and Hearty Mushroom Sauce sitting on the shelf. I modified the original recipe to make it work, and work it did. It worked so well in fact, that I was unable to get pictures of the finished results because we were all so hungry we ate it up pretty quickly.

Slow Cooker Chicken Cacciatore with Ragu Homestyle Thick and Hearty Sauce

You will need:

One medium onion, chopped

1 1/2-2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken thighs

1 (23oz jar) of Ragu Homestyle Thick and Hearty Sauce

1/4 cup of water or chicken broth

1 green pepper, chopped

1 bay leaf

1. Chop the onion and place it into the bottom of the slow cooker.

2. Remove any unwanted fat from the chicken thighs and add them to the slow cooker on top of the onion.

3. Pour the Ragu on top of the chicken and onion.

4. Add water or chicken broth to the sauce, chicken, and onion; I used water to help me get every last bit of saucy goodness from the jar!

5. Chop the pepper and add it to the slow cooker.

6. Add bay leaf.

7. Cover slow cooker with lid and set it on low for 6-8 hours. When finished, enjoy over pasta or rice, or with vegetables on the side!

Want It? Get It!

If you don't already have Ragu sauce in your pantry, you can visit your local grocery store to pick some up. If you are not sure that your local store carries it (I think they all do, but I've been known to be wrong), you can visit the Ragu website and click the "where to buy" link. I would definitely recommend both the Homestyle Thick and Hearty Traditional sauce and the Homestyle Thick and Hearty Mushroom sauce.
Be sure to follow Ragu on YouTube, Instagram, Pinterest, Facebook, and Twitter.

Want It? Win It!

One lucky MBP reader will win a jar of Ragu Homestyle Thick and Hearty Traditional Sauce and a cute Ragu Tote Bag! The Giveaway is open to US residents, 18+, no PO Boxes. Just use the handy RC entry form below to enter for your chance to win. Mommy's Block Party is not responsible for prize fulfillment. Please see our policies page for details.

Good Luck!