Food

Marinara

Is your garden producing a bumper crop of tomatoes, peppers, onions and herbs? Or have you been lured by inviting farm stands, buying more zucchini, mushrooms, and garlic than you can imagine using before they spoil? Do not fret, make marinara sauce!

This is my work horse sauce. I make it in large pots, and keep it in the freezer. As with all good recipes, in my opinion, this sauce lends itself to your taste, pocketbook, and what you have available.

Ingredients:

⅓ cup of Olive Oil – it may seem like a lot of oil, but if I am adding meat, it is usually very lean – thus a bit more oil

1 very large Onion – finely diced or two medium onions

3 teaspoons of Garlic

1 small Bell Pepper – finely diced

2 ribs of Celery – finely diced

2 Carrots – peeled and shredded

1 large Zucchini — shredded

1 large can of Tomato Sauce

1 large can of Diced Tomatoes

1 large can of Crushed Tomatoes

½ pound to 1 pound of frozen Spinach

1 tablespoon of Sugar

2-3 Bay Leaves

1 ½ tablespoons of Rosemary

1 tablespoon of Fennel

1 tablespoon of Marjoram

1 ½ tablespoons of Oregano

1 cup of Red Wine

1 cup of Water – you may need more, the water allows you to simmer the sauce without it getting too thick, and to thin it out, according to taste – do not worry if you add too much, you can just let it simmer away

Salt and Pepper to taste

Basil – 1 ½ tablespoons dried – add when other herbs go in, if using fresh basil, add at the end, and use at least a ¼ cup

⅓ cup of Parmesan or Romano Cheese – this is entirely optional

Directions:

In a large stock pot, pour olive oil, and sauté onions until translucent, add garlic, cook for one minute, and then add peppers, celery, carrots and zucchini. Sauté the vegetables for at least five minutes, add the herbs, cook for another three to five minutes, and then add tomato products, spinach, sugar, wine, and water. Stir well, and bring to a boil, and then reduce heat, and skim scum, as needed. Let the sauce simmer for about an hour. Add more liquid, as needed and correct flavors. Right before turning off, add cheese and fresh basil, and let it simmer for about five minutes more.

Options:

This is my basic spaghetti sauce. Sometimes we eat spaghetti with meat, and sometimes just with this sauce. If using with meat, brown ground beef, in a skillet, or add meatballs to another large pot, and then add as much sauce as you would like. You can store the unused sauce, in the freezer for up to six months.

You can also make this sauce omitting all or some of the vegetables, except the tomatoes, or adding other vegetables, such as mushrooms or yellow squash. Taste the sauce, as it cooks. You may want less of some herb, or you want to add something else.

You are looking for great flavors – period.

Fast Marinara

This sauce is all about the basil – I only make when I have abundance of basil. Basil must be added, at the end, of cooking. It does not hold up well to hours of simmering. Ideally, this is when you want fresh tomatoes, but you may use a can of diced tomatoes.

Ingredients:

2 large, fresh Tomatoes – diced

1 teaspoon of Sugar

1 medium Onion – diced

1 tablespoon of Garlic – crushed or diced

2 tablespoons of Olive Oil

¾ cup of White Wine

Salt and Pepper

1 cup of Fresh Basil Leaves

Directions:

In a large skillet, sauté onion, until translucent, add the garlic, and cook for about one minute, add tomatoes, sugar, salt and pepper and cook for about another three minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the wine, bring to a quick boil, reduce heat cook for a couple more minutes, and add basil. Cook for one more minute, and turn heat off.

Serve this sauce over pasta. Or you can let it thicken, a few minutes, once the wine has been added, before adding the basil, and use it on bruschetta or spoon it over baked mozzarella for a great appetizer or first course.

Options:

After you add tomatoes, add one can of sliced black olives, and continue cooking. When you add basil also crumble 8 ounces of feta, and stir well – pour over thin spaghetti, and serve immediately, or room temperature.

This entry was posted on July 12, 2013 at 12:01 am and is filed under Food, SlideShow, Uncategorized. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.