Foodstuffs

[legalmoose]

Made a marinara, a combo of a little bit of everything in the pantry and the fresh veggie department (fresh tomatoes, mixed dried wild mushrooms, etc.).  Was terribly yummy.  Combined with Bonny Doon's Charbono, a foxy little Napa Valley 2002 red that was just marvelous with the wild mushrooms, and a dessert from Sticky Fingers of a mint brownie, and it was just a perfect dinner.

I need to cook more often. :-D

Comments

[eyow.livejournal.com]

Okay, your cousin needs help. I cannot for the life of me make a basic marinara. What is your secret?

And yes, I also need to cook more often. Perhaps that's part of the problem. :P

The rough recipe

[legalmoose]

1 yellow onion, chopped
several garlic cloves, minced
1 Tbsp olive oil
1 can (28 oz) crushed tomatoes
1 can (15 oz) diced tomatoes
1 Tbsp balsamic vineagar
1 Tbsp sugar
1 Tbsp tomato paste
1 tsp italian seasoning
1 tsp basil
1 tsp oregano
1 tsp thyme (optional)

Heat the olive oil in a saucepan. Add the onion and cook for about 10 minutes, or until translucent. Add the garlic (and some crushed red pepper, if you want some heat) and cook for an additional minute, stirring frequently to avoid burning the garlic. Add the rest of the ingredients, tomatoes first. Bring to an almost-boil, then take down to a simmer. Cover and simmer for 20 minutes or so. Right about this point you can start the large pot of water heating so it'll be done at about the same time.

It's better if you can let it sit overnight and meld, but it's good this way.

Other things I've added: mushrooms; reconstituted wild mushrooms; garlic paste; sundried tomatoes; sundried tomato paste; zucchini. If you add more veggies, saute them first and then add with the tomatoes.

It's a great recipe because the only "perishable" ingredients are the onions and garlic, which I keep around anyway. The rest is canned/bottled, so can be kept around until you need it. God bless Cooking Light magazine. :-)

[jss]

You can also use fresh tomatoes (which take longer to cook to bring out the flavors) and red wine in your marinaras. Fresh herbs (especially the basil) add a very fresh flavor to the sauce, much mroe so than dried herbs do. And I prefer brown sugar (or better, molasses) as the sweetener in my marinara.