The Best Pizza Sauce

I got this recipe for pizza sauce from my sister Diane many years ago.  It was published in their Wyndmere, North Dakota Centennial cookbook, so I haven't lost it like I usually have done with great recipes, but wanted to put it on here for the kids etc to have easy access to.  It makes a huge batch, but I don't mind at all because I have plenty of people who like to get some of it to freeze and have on hand for their homemade pizzas and other dishes they use pizza sauce with, or just for dipping with.  It has very little sugar also which is a plus, as a ton of the bought sauce is loaded with.  This is really fresh tasting and not tinny either like the canned stuff.  I usually try to use it up within 6 months though because I think the taste changes when it sits in the freezer too long.  My one daughter makes a recipe sometimes for a French bread pizza (my sister, Karen's recipe) where you just slice the bread in half the long way, hollow out most of the bread in the center (make homemade croutons with it!~) then add some sauce fairly lightly in the bottom, add whatever pizza toppings you like, such as cooked sausage and pepperoni, olives, onions-whatever, and then add your mozzarella/cheddar or any pizza cheese, and bake on a rack in the oven covered with tin foil, or a baking sheet, at 400 until the cheese is melted and the bread is toasty, maybe 12-15 minutes.  cut in slices and eat.  She also makes Mexican pizza a lot with it.  Experiment and enjoy!

PIZZA SAUCE: (I put mine in the crockpot on high for 4 hours, but you can put it in a large kettle and let it simmer for 3 hours which is what the recipe suggests, I just don't like watching it, so do it this way)

In a large crockpot combine:
2-(29 oz) cans of tomato sauce plus 1/2 can of 8 oz tomato sauce (6-1/2 cups total)
3 cups of water
1 Tablespoon black pepper
3 Tablespoons sugar
2 Tablespoons salt
1 Tablespoon crushed oregano
1 Tablespoon crushed sweet basil (regular basil)
2 Tablespoons garlic powder
3 Tablespoons Parmesan cheese (I use the grated fresh)

Cook on high for 4 hours in the crock pot (or 3 hours in a kettle on the stove on simmer). 

ADD:  4 (12 ounce) cans of tomato paste and 3 cups more of water stirring until smooth. 

put in half pint jars and freeze until ready to use.  I just put 1 cup portions in freezer zip lock bags and squeeze the air out as much as possible so they lay flat and freeze them that way.