Heat the olive oil in a large skillet or pan over medium-high heat. Add the onion and cook until translucent. Add the garlic; cook until fragrant (about 30 seconds). Add the beef, breaking it apart with a wooden spoon. Fry until just beginning to brown (about 2-3 minutes); transfer to a 6-quart slow cooker bowl.

Return the skillet to the stove; pour in the wine while scraping any bits of the fried meat from the pan. Bring to a gentle simmer and transfer to the slow cooker bowl.

To the slow cooker bowl: add in the crushed tomatoes, beef stock, tomato paste, carrot, stock powder (or crushed bouillon cubes), salt, oregano, basil, sugar and pepper. Cover and cook on low for 6-7 hours, or high for 3-4 hours. Add in the chopped parsley before serving.

In the last 15 minutes of cooking time, boil pasta in salted water following packet instructions. Drain, reserving ½ cup pasta water. Pour the reserved water back into the pasta along with 2 cups cooked bolognese sauce. Stir until the sauce is thick enough to coat the pasta. Serve with parmesan cheese and (extra) chopped parsley, if desired.

To freeze: cool completely before transferring any remaining sauce into air tight containers. I use disposable containers since the sauce tends to stain. Nutrition information is based on per serve out of 9 serves. The recipe states serves 8, but you will have about 2 serves of left overs!