{"id":617,"date":"2009-11-09T03:00:33","date_gmt":"2009-11-09T03:00:33","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/cookhappylivehealthy.org\/blog\/?p=617"},"modified":"2024-07-24T20:16:52","modified_gmt":"2024-07-24T20:16:52","slug":"last-of-summer-marinara-sauce","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cookhappylivehealthy.org\/blog\/last-of-summer-marinara-sauce\/","title":{"rendered":"Last-of-Summer Marinara Sauce"},"content":{"rendered":"

Cooking and Eating with the Seasons<\/h2>\n
\"Homemade
Homemade Marinara--Simple yet Elegant<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

There’s not much to a basic marinara sauce: Tomatoes cooked down with onion and garlic, then seasoned with salt, pepper and herbs.\u00a0 In summer, a fresh tomato sauce doesn’t go much beyond that.\u00a0 Moreover, it’s kept light by cooking only briefly and using sweet onions, fresh garlic and fresh basil.<\/p>\n

Colder weather calls for a heartier sauce, not to mention that sweet onions and fresh basil are long gone.\u00a0 Hence my idea for a more savory, longer simmered sauce with regular winter storage onions, roasted garlic, a little red wine, some sausage meatballs and mushrooms, all topped off by hardier herbs like fresh thyme, oregano and parsley.<\/p>\n

A Note About Time: <\/strong> Making a long-cooking savory marinara is more akin to ritual than fast everyday meal making.\u00a0 As probably any good Italian grandma will tell you, there’s no rushing a good marinara.\u00a0 So I allow it to be an evening or weekend project, something done piecemeal, while cooking a different dinner or puttering around the house.\u00a0 The fact that it may not be done for dinner is a good thing.\u00a0 Tomato sauces always taste better the second day.<\/p>\n

Serves 6-8 <\/strong>(since of course you’ll want leftovers)<\/p>\n

Step 1: Puree and Cook the Tomatoes<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

\"Box
Cut and puree enough tomatoes to make about 10 cups of puree. When fresh tomatoes are gone, use 2-3 large (28 oz.) cans of Muir Glen or a similarly high-quality canned tomatoes with their juices. <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

It all starts with the tomatoes.\u00a0 No matter how skilled a cook you are, a marinara will be only as flavorful as the tomatoes that\u00a0 go into it.\u00a0 So start with the best, which generally means heading to the garden or farmers market.<\/p>\n

Fresh tomato marinara takes a lot of tomatoes, about 6 to 8 pounds.\u00a0 Don’t be surprised at how many tomatoes that comes out to.\u00a0 Remember, once the water is cooked out, there’s not much left.<\/p>\n

Scoop out stems, cut roughly into halves or quarters, then process in the food processor until pretty smooth.\u00a0 Save time and don’t bother peeling; the skins just get chopped up, too.<\/p>\n

\"Cooking
The big surface area of this saute pan allows for faster evaporation of the tomato juices.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Cook the puree in a BIG, flared side saut\u00e9 pan until it is no longer runny, but thick and rich.\u00a0 This may take as long as 2 or 3 hours; which is why this is a good evening or weekend project.\u00a0 Go ahead and fix a different dinner and prepare all the other ingredients while the puree cooks.<\/p>\n

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Step 2:\u00a0 Roast the Garlic<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

\"How
Roast 1-2 heads of garlic, depending on your taste for it, bearing in mind that roasting turns it sweet and mild.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Garlic is easy to roast.\u00a0 Just dribble a little olive oil (about 1\/2 Tbsp.)\u00a0 over each head, rub it all over, then pop in a small, lidded baking dish and bake at 350 (F) for 45-60 minutes.<\/p>\n

While a small terra cotta garlic roaster is nice, I often use a small baking dish so I can roast 3-4 heads at a time. \u00a0 Roasted garlic keeps for a week or so in the frig, so why not keep some extra on hand for the wonderful flavor it adds to most dishes.<\/p>\n

\"How<\/a>
FYI, this particular variety of garlic has a purple hue; roasting didn't turn it purple!<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

You’ll know the garlic is done when it feels squishy and spongy when squeezed lightly.\u00a0 I throw in a head or two whenever I have the oven on.<\/p>\n

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Step 3:\u00a0 Cook and Puree Carrots<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

\"Add
It doesn't take many carrots to work a mellowing magic, just 2-3 large ones.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Pureed carrots are a Mary Addition to classic marinara.\u00a0 I like how their sweetness mellows the acidic taste of the tomatoes while adding valuable nutritional depth.<\/p>\n

Cut carrots into 1\/4″ thick half moons, then microwave with about 2 Tbsp. Imagine Vegetable Broth for 8 minutes (stirring twice during the cooking time.)\u00a0 Once cooked, puree in the food processor and stir into the sauce.<\/p>\n

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Step 4:\u00a0 Saute Onions<\/span><\/strong> <\/span><\/p>\n

\"How
Use 2 medium onions, diced to about 1\/2"<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

As always, warm about 1 Tbsp. olive oil in a saute pan before adding the diced onion.\u00a0 Cook and stir about 10 minutes, until they are nicely browned.\u00a0 Then reserve them in a bowl until the tomatoes are cooked down.\u00a0 This way, they don’t get cooked to death while the tomatoes simmer away their juices.<\/p>\n

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Step 5:\u00a0 Saute the Mushrooms<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

\"How
Use 1\/2 to 3\/4 lb. Cremini are a favorite, but white button are fine, as are portobellos if sliced thinly<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The same goes for the mushrooms.\u00a0 After sauteing, I reserved in a bowl until the tomato sauce is cooked down.<\/p>\n

From the picture to the right, it may look like I’ve used two different kinds of mushrooms, but they are all cremini.\u00a0 The darker ones on the far right were just a couple weeks old when I finally found them in the frig.\u00a0 Although they were on the verge of rotting, my waste-not, want-not conscience made me use them up.\u00a0 Good thing.\u00a0 They were actually much richer-tasting than the pretty, light-colored mushrooms on the left that I had purchased that day.<\/p>\n

Optional Step:\u00a0 Deglaze with Wine <\/strong> <\/strong><\/p>\n

\"Deglazing<\/strong><\/strong>
Use about 1\/2 cup good quality wine to deglaze<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

For a gourmet touch, deglaze the onion and mushroom sauteing pan with 1\/2 cup good quality red wine.\u00a0 After scraping any bits and coatings from the bottom of pan, cook the wine a few minutes to reduce slightly, then\u00a0 add directly to the sauce.<\/p>\n

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\"How
To keep our meat consumption moderate, I used just 3\/4 lb. of Italian sausage rather than a full pound. I mixed it with 1\/4 cup gluten-free breadcrumbs, 1 egg, salt and pepper and 2 tsp. of dried leaf basil, since there wouldn't be any fresh basil in the sauce.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Step 6: Basic Meatballs<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

Like a basic tomato sauce, it’s good to know a basic meatball recipe.\u00a0 And like a basic tomato sauce, there isn’t much to basic meatballs:\u00a0 Meat, whole grain breadcrumbs, onion, egg, herbs and salt and pepper.<\/p>\n

For this dish, I saved time and skipped the onion since I was using sausage which has plenty of flavor.\u00a0 Also, the sauce already contained a lot of onion.<\/p>\n

The best way to mix meatballs?\u00a0 Knead everything together with your hands.\u00a0 It’s messy, but go ahead and form the meatballs while you’re at it.\u00a0 I size the meatballs small (about 1 1\/2″), both to spread the meat further and so they cook through without burning.<\/p>\n

\"How
<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"How
Because my sausage was so lean, I had to fry the meatballs in a little olive oil<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Once formed, fry the meatballs in the same pan used to cook the onion and mushrooms.\u00a0 No need to wash in between.\u00a0 The flavors just keep piling up.<\/p>\n

I found a large soup spoon does the best job of turning each meatball without destroying its neighbor.\u00a0 Once done, I just turned off the heat and reserved until the sauce was done.<\/p>\n

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\"How
Cut off the "hairy" end of the head.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Step 7:\u00a0 Mash the Garlic<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Once roasted, garlic turns soft and silky.\u00a0 Cut off the ends of the cloves and the pulp can be easily squeezed into a small bowl.\u00a0 Start mashing with a fork, then gradually add a little broth (2-4 Tbsp.) to thin so it can be stirred easily into the sauce.<\/p>\n

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\"Squeezing<\/strong><\/strong>
Squeeze the soft pulp from its skins, either clove by clover or several cloves at a time. <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

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\"Thinning<\/strong><\/strong>
I used a little Imagine's Vegetable Broth for a flavorful thinning agent.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

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\"Seasoning
Just a teaspoon of sugar takes off the acidic edge of the tomatoes.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Step 8: Season<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

Stir in sea salt (I used Celtic salt) and freshly ground pepper, to taste.\u00a0 If in doubt, start small.\u00a0 More can be added at the end, after all the other ingredients are added.\u00a0 This is also one of the few times when I use white sugar, just a teaspoon, to further “smooth out excess acidity,” as Joy of Cooking<\/em> puts it.<\/p>\n

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\"Adding
The herbs rescued before the big storm come to my aid now. About 1\/4 cup of thyme leaves, 1\/3 cup of oregano leaves and a handful of flat-leafed parsley will add magnificent flavor to the sauce.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Step 9:\u00a0 Prepare the Herbs<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Fresh herbs take a little more time than dried, but the flavor is worth it.\u00a0 Hold the top end of each stem with one hand and with the other hand, strip the leaves from the bottom part with the thumb and index finger.\u00a0 The idea is to eliminate the tough parts of the stem.\u00a0 The small thin tops of each stem aren’t a problem.\u00a0 Chop everything until fairly small.<\/p>\n

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\"Adding
<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Step 10:\u00a0 Put It All Together!<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Now comes the fun part.\u00a0 By the time you’ve cooked dinner and prepared the other ingredients, the tomatoes should be cooked down to a thick, rich sauce\u2014like the stuff you buy in jars.\u00a0 Now dump in the onion, mushrooms, meatballs and roasted garlic.\u00a0 (The pureed carrots and wine, if using, should already be in there.)\u00a0 Stir everything together well, and continue simmering for about 5-10 minutes.<\/p>\n

\"When
<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Not until now, when you turn off the heat, should you stir in the fresh herbs.\u00a0 They shouldn’t be cooked much to better preserve their bright, fresh flavor.<\/p>\n

By now, you’re surely tired!\u00a0 So put the lid on your sauce and put it in a cold place.\u00a0 I have an outdoor shed that makes a perfect winter refrigerator.\u00a0 Of course the sauce can also be stored in a regular refrigerator, but cool it completely first.\u00a0 It’s hard on a refrigerator\u2014and uses a lot of energy–to cool a hot dish.<\/p>\n

The hard work will pay off.\u00a0 As the sauce sits all night, the flavors will meld and you’ll be set for a super easy, super delicious seasonal meal the next night.\u00a0 Enjoy the passing of the season.<\/p>\n

\"It
Pair pasta and marinara with a simple salad made with the last of the lettuces and yellow and purple peppers of the season.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

P.S. Gluten Free?\u00a0 No Problem<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

\"Fresh,
Fresh Pasta is now available in a gluten-free form<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

In addition to the many brands of dry gluten-free pasta (Tinkyada being my favorite), Longmont-based Villa Bozza now makes fresh, gluten-free pasta for a special treat.\u00a0 Find it in the Denver metro area at select Whole Foods and King Soopers stores, and at several farmers markets.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Cooking and Eating with the Seasons There’s not much to a basic marinara sauce: Tomatoes cooked down with onion and garlic, then seasoned with salt, pepper and herbs.\u00a0 In summer, a fresh tomato sauce doesn’t go much beyond that.\u00a0 Moreover, it’s kept light by cooking only briefly and using sweet onions, fresh garlic and fresh … Read more<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"generate_page_header":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[20,1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-617","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-recipes","category-uncategorized","masonry-post","generate-columns","tablet-grid-50","mobile-grid-100","grid-parent","grid-50"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cookhappylivehealthy.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/617","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cookhappylivehealthy.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cookhappylivehealthy.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cookhappylivehealthy.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cookhappylivehealthy.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=617"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/cookhappylivehealthy.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/617\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6388,"href":"https:\/\/cookhappylivehealthy.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/617\/revisions\/6388"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cookhappylivehealthy.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=617"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cookhappylivehealthy.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=617"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cookhappylivehealthy.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=617"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}