Simple Red Pasta Sauce with Variations

This is my tried and true recipe for simple red pasta sauce. I use it for basically everything - long and cut pasta, stuffed pasta, lasagna, chicken parm, etc. I almost always have everything on hand and I have made it so many times I could probably do it in my sleep. As a result, I should probably just get this out of the way up front....if you need precise measurements then you will probably hate this recipe. If you are cool with that it may take you a few tries to totally perfect this sauce for your tastes. But really, that's the beauty! Just about everything can be adjusted "to taste". Love garlic? Add more! Want it spicy? Throw in red pepper! Want to hide veggies from your kids? Shred some carrots! I am always experimenting with new ingredients and some batches are better than others, but it's never turned out bad. I will include some notes in the recipe. And I apologize upfront for the lazy instagram pictures - dinner was running late and I had a two year old "helping". ;)

It's best when you use fresh basil and Italian plum tomatoes, my favorite brand is Tuttorosso. I like the peeled plum shaped tomatoes in basil (in the blue can) but they rarely go on sale so I often use the plain peeled tomatoes (in the green can). I've also used Progresso brand with success. If you use tomatoes and paste without herbs, you may want to adjust your seasonings accordingly.

Lastly, I use a food mill to process the tomatoes to extract only the juice and get rid of the pulp and seeds. You can get a similar result from blending the tomatoes and putting them through a fine sieve. However, if you like chunky sauce, you can also use crushed or diced tomatoes in lieu of the whole tomatoes.

Simple Red Pasta Sauce Recipe

Make enough sauce for 1-1.5 lbs pasta or one saucy lasagna recipe.

(1/3 cup) extra virgin olive oil or enough to coat the bottom of your pan.
(1.5 tsp) finely minced garlic
(2) 28-32 oz. cans of peeled plum tomatoes with or without basil
(1) six ounce can of tomato paste with or without Italian herbs (You can use less if you like thinner sauce)
(1) handful fresh basil from your garden or one package from the grocery store, torn into pieces Or (2)  tsp dried basil
(1/2 tsp) oregano (I use fresh if I have it or dried)
(1 tsp) Italian seasoning - optional
(1/2 tsp) ground black pepper
salt to taste

Process tomatoes in a food mill over a bowl. Reserve the juice and discard the pulp. (You can also process them right over the pan once you are comfortable with the recipe.)

Heat olive oil in a 2-3qt saucepan over medium heat until hot but not smoking. Add the garlic and let it cook for about 30 seconds until fragrant, watching carefully that it does not brown.

At this point you would add ground meat and cook thoroughly if you are making meat sauce.

Add the reserved tomato juice, paste and spices, except for the salt. Bring to a boil and then reduce heat. If you are adding veggies, go ahead and throw them in now. Simmer with the lid vented for 45 min to an hour.

Add salt to taste and serve over your favorite pasta! Easy!

Variations:

Meat Sauce - add meatballs or brown about a pound of ground beef after adding the garlic and before the tomatoes. You can also double the recipe to make "Sunday Sauce" with meatballs, beef ribs and sausage.
Primavera - add whatever veggies you like or have on hand. Shredded carrots, squash, broccoli, onion, peppers, etc.
Sweeter Sauce - add onions and cook in olive oil until soft before adding garlic. You can also add a tablespoon of table sugar.
Spicy Sauce - add red pepper to taste

DIY Pumpkin Spice Lattes

*

A quick post for the Pumpkin Spice Latte recipe I just concocted! I looked all over pinterest and didn't find exactly what I was looking for - a recipe that used espresso, vanilla extract and evaporated or condensed milk in the ingredients. I wanted to use evaporated milk because the Starbucks Pumpkin Spice syrup is basically flavored, condensed milk and I want these to taste as close as possible to the "real thing".

I whipped these up and sampled them to my friend Susan and my husband - they are taste test approved! 

Pumpkin Spice Latte Recipe

For the syrup:

1½ cups water

1½ cups granulated sugar

2-3 tsp pumpkin pie spice (or to taste)

3 tbs pumpkin puree

2 tbs vanilla extract (yes, tablespoons)

¼ to ½ c. evaporated milk (optional)

Combine water and sugar over medium heat until dissolved. Add spices and pumpkin and simmer for five minutes, stirring frequently. Allow to cool for 5 minutes and then add vanilla extract. Allow to cool for an additional 5-10 minutes.

Put the mixture through a cheesecloth or fine sieve to remove the grittiness from the spices and pumpkin.  Add condensed milk, if desired. If you choose to add it, it will make your lattes creamier.

Store in refrigerator in the container of your choice.

Lattes:

Combine:

2 shots espresso (substitute 3-4 oz very strong coffee)

6 oz steamed milk (160 degrees)

2-3 tbs pumpkin spice syrup, or to taste

Top with whipped cream and ground cinnamon, optional garnish

*photo courtesy of Annie's Eats, which was an inspiration for this recipe. Check out her blog!

Going Green....A Story of Courage.

Earlier this week I took Bogey to the "spa." He hates going to get groomed so in my mind it makes it easier for him if I call it the spa. Instead of being thrown into a bathtub against his will he can imagine a room full of all you can eat pupperoni's and belly rubs. Let's not get caught up in the logic here.

Anyway, on the way home I pass by Cagle farm and they had a sign up saying there were fresh tomatoes. I love fresh tomatoes partly because I always have a secret hope that they will be as good those on Crete. Much like Bogey, I am somewhat disappointed with the experience.

My inner voice compelled me to stop for the elusive tomatoes and I found that they also had fresh greens, okra, corn, peppers and zucchini. For some reason I found myself intrigued with the idea of cooking greens. I've never cooked anything except spinach and have never really found much of a desire or reason to venture outside the box. It was $1.00 for a large bunch of turnip greens and before I could overthink it.....I threw caution to the wind and bought them! Oh, I know right? Bravery defined.

I decided on a menu of Greek style pork steaks (brizoles), turnip greens and baked sweet potatoes. I've been trying to plan my meals around the sale items at Publix and this week they had pork steaks on sale for $2.29/lb. If you've never had pork steaks they are cut from the boston butt or pork shoulder and are not as naturally tender as pork chops and therefore should be cooked over a lower heat. The original recipe for the greens may be found here. Thank you Leon.

Brizoles

ingredients

•  2 lbs of pork steaks
• 1/4 cup of your favorite dry red wine
• 2 tbs fresh lemon juice
• 1-1.5 tsp dried oregano
• salt and pepper to taste
• lemon wedge for garnish

preparation

Place pork in a shallow bowl or pan and marinate with the wine, lemon juice, oregano and spices. Meanwhile, heat grill to high heat.

Place steaks on the grill and lower to medium heat. Cook to your preferred doneness, turning once. Garnish with lemon wedges and serve.

Leon O'Neal's Turnip Greens

ingredients

• 1 large bunch turnip greens
• 1 small turnip, peeled and diced
• Dash of sugar
• 6 slices bacon, diced
• 1 onion, diced
• 1 tablespoon lemon pepper
• Salt to taste
• Louisiana hot-pepper sauce

 preparation

Wash the greens in several changes of water in the sink until no more grit is seen (this took me five rinses). Chop the greens coarsely - I'm not gonna lie. They stink. Almost to the point that it turned me off the dish but try to get through this part and there is great reward.

Bring a large pot of water to boil and add the greens, the turnip, and the sugar. Cook for 12 to 15 minutes, or until tender. Drain.

In a large skillet, sauté the bacon until it gives up its grease. Add the onion and cook 7 minutes until the onion is soft. (Variation: cook the bacon until it is crispy to give the greens more a crunch.)

Toss the greens with the bacon and onion. Add the lemon pepper and salt. Serve with Louisiana hot-pepper sauce.

***

I baked the sweet potatoes in the oven at 425 degrees for about an hour or so until the skin begins to wrinkle (and I also pureed some potato with water for Evie's dinner - which she did not eat).

All in all, this was a delicious fall inspired dinner. The greens were even better than expected and I would definitely make this recipe again. The flavor was mild and the hot sauce gave it an extra kick - delicious! The added bonus is that I got to enjoy a little bit of hipster smugness from buying from a local farmer. Sweet!

One last note. Go....no, RUN to your local Publix and purchase the Pumpkin Pie ice cream. It was an amazing way to end this dinner - and it's on sale for $3.50 until Thursday!

And on the second day I made soup.

If you asked me what dish I would choose to be the first blog post, I never would have picked vegetable soup. I had grand intentions of a super impressive baked good. Or if I was feeling really ambitious, perhaps a recipe from The French Laundry. Wishful thinking.

So I must start someday with something - and that day is soup. Even more to the point, leftover roast beef soup.

This soup is the bastard child of Alton Brown's vegetable soup recipe. His is mostly vegetarian but, let's be honest, I'm Greek and my people like their meat. I cooked a roast for dinner last night and used the leftovers to create this soup. The recipe is as follows:

4 tbs olive oil
2 cups chopped leeks, the white part only
2 tbs finely minced garlic
2 cups peeled and chopped carrots
2 cups peeled and diced potatoes
2 cups frozen cut green beans
2 quarts of beef broth or stock
2, 14.5oz cans diced tomatoes, undrained
2 cups frozen corn kernels
Leftover roast beef, chopped with reserved drippings
black pepper
kosher salt
1/4 cup chopped, packed parsley (I forgot to buy this).
1 or 2 tsp. lemon juice...this sounds strange but it really adds to the flavor.

Heat the olive oil in large, heavy-bottomed stockpot over medium-low heat. Once hot, add the leeks, garlic, and a pinch of salt and sweat until they begin to soften, approximately 7 to 8 minutes.

Add the carrots, potatoes, and green beans and continue to cook for 4 to 5 more minutes, stirring occasionally.

Add the stock, increase the heat to high, and bring to a simmer. Once simmering, add the tomatoes, corn kernels, chopped roast beef with drippings and pepper.

Reduce the heat to low, cover, and cook until the vegetables are fork tender, approximately 25 to 30 minutes.

Remove from heat and add the parsley (that I didn't have) and lemon juice. Season, to taste, with kosher salt. Serve immediately.

Elliott and I had two giant bowls. The soup has a ton of flavor but is relatively light and I think the tomatoes add some body to the broth. If you don't like these particular vegetables, just add what you like. I've made this before using onions instead of leeks and egg noodles instead of potatoes. It was equally as delicious.

So with much love.....suck it, Alton. Oh....I don't mean that. He seems so nice.