Sunday is sauce day!

From the moment I was ripped from the womb, I have been in love with my Grandma Salerno's sauce. Every Sunday was sauce day at grandma's house. I always looked forward to this, and I loved it even more so as I got older. Now, Sunday sauce is a thing of the past, and boy do I miss it!

First, let's get something straight. Salerno is pronounced as follows: Suh-LAIR-no. Telemarketers always had a blast with this one, adding extra letters and syllables. I can't tell you how many times I corrected these cretins over the phone. While I am incredibly proud of my Italian heritage, I could not get married and change my name quick enough.

Grandma's sauce is the most simple thing in the world. I may be old fashioned, but sometimes you need to take a few shortcuts. This sauce cooks all day on low to develop the flavor. Also, you really should include meat in the sauce. It tastes fine without it, if you are a Vegetarian or Vegan. If you are not either of these, and you enjoy your meat, have at it my friends! Types of meat I recommend are as follows:

• country style pork ribs
• homemade meatballs
• hot or mild Italian sausage (If you can, find the kind with fennel seeds in it. You can usually find it in your local Italian deli that makes their own sausage.)
• Braciole (commonly pronounced /bra'zhul/ from the Sicilian pronunciation)

You can put any kind of meat in the sauce, but these are the ones I recommend. If you are a pork eater, I highly suggest using some sort of pork. The flavor that pork brings to the sauce, in my opinion, is not comparable to beef. All meat is browned before its added to the sauce. The carmalization of the meat also adds another layer of flavor to the pot. The end product is a big, rich pot of delicious sauce that your family will love.





 

Basic Marinara Sauce

 

 

Ingredients

 

3 large cloves of garlic, minced (Do yourself a favor and use fresh garlic)

3 (or so) tablespoons of good Extra Virgin Olive Oil

1 large can of Tomato Puree (29oz.) plus 1 can of water

1 large can of Tomato Sauce (29oz.) plus 1 can of water

1 small can of Tomato Paste (6oz.) plus 1 can of water

1 tsp freshly ground black pepper

1/4 tsp baking soda

1 large handful of fresh sweet basil

salt to taste

 

 

 

 

 

 

In a large sauce pot, over low heat, slowly saute garlic in the olive oil. Take your time, so that the garlic doesn't brown.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

When the garlic is tender and fragrant, add tomato puree, sauce and paste. For each can, you will be adding a can of water to sort of rinse out the can and thinning out the sauce. Don't worry if the sauce looks thin! It will be cooking for a long time, and it tends to evaporate and thicken on its own.

 

Next, add the basil, pepper and baking soda. You can either chop up the basil, or leave it whole. I know a few people who freak out at the sight of anything green. If you keep the basil whole, its easier to remove or ladle out the sauce around bigger pieces. Although, when the basil is chopped up, the beautiful flavors are released into the sauce. So if you can avoid removing it, chop that stuff up and put it in! Now, I know what you are thinking. "Why in the heck am I putting baking soda in the sauce?!" Seriously, there is a method to this madness. You know how some people get indigestion or acid reflux from the acidity in the tomatoes? Wellllllll, the baking soda cuts the acidity in the sauce, and will reduce, if not eliminate, that all together.

Keep the heat at low, stir everything together and add salt to taste.

 

If you are adding meat to the sauce, this is the time I would do it. Today, I added some homemade meatballs. (I will post the recipe for these delicious meatballs in my next post.)

 

I let the sauce simmer on low, partially covered, for a minimum of 3-4 hours. Remember to stir occasionally. If you are using any meat other than meatballs or sausage, the sauce is done when the meat is falling off the bone.

 

Feel free to use homemade pasta, but the boxed stuff works just fine. Boil your pasta according to instructions on box and drain. Plate up your pasta, ladle sauce over the top and top with Parmesan cheese, if you prefer. I LOVE cheese.

 

 

This recipe will serve 6 or more, depending on how saucy you like you pasta. The sauce freezes really well, if for some weird chance you have leftovers. I hope you love it as much as I do!