Gravy

[RW]

As promised, Fash....this is my basic sauce. I use this as the starting point for most of my Italian recipes. Don't hold me to some of the amounts as I usually eyeball it. You will have to experiment a little to fine tune it.




This is awesome Renee. I love a good pasta, but as a bachelor I don't make my own. I would like to give this a try though.



What are San Marzano tomatoes?

They are a type of heirloom tomato that is long a thin. They are thicker, have less acid and a stronger tomato taste.



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They look like roma tomatoes.

They are a type of Roma (plum) tomato.  They are known for being sweeter, less acidic and have fewer seeds.



They are also a bit more expensive than regular romas, which you can use in these recipes as well.

[RW]

All this pasta talk makes me want to go to Sobeys and buy all the ingredients needed to make sauce.

Do eet!  Get sweet onions ;)

[Anonymous]

All this pasta talk makes me want to go to Sobeys and buy all the ingredients needed to make sauce.

Do eet!  Get sweet onions ;)

My girlfriend won't believe me when I tell her I'm making pasta.

[RW]

All this pasta talk makes me want to go to Sobeys and buy all the ingredients needed to make sauce.

Do eet!  Get sweet onions ;)

My girlfriend won't believe me when I tell her I'm making pasta.

Even more reason to do it!  Hahaha

[Renee]

Mine is fairly similar:



1 small sweet onion

4-5 cloves garlic whole

1 can San Marzano whole tomatoes (I use Passata in a pinch)

5-6 large fresh sweet basil leaves

Salt and pepper to taste

Sugar to taste



I dice the onion and peel the garlic leaving the cloves whole and fry in olive oil on medium-low heat.  The key is caramelizing the onions until they are sweet but not "browning" them.  They should be soft.  Then I add the can of tomatoes, crushing the whole tomatoes as they come out of the can.  I let that simmer for a good 30 minutes.  I taste it at that point and season with salt, pepper and even sugar.



Now you probably think I'm nuts with the sugar but tomatoes can be rather acidic.  To counter that, you can use a LITTLE BIT of white sugar to take the edge off.  I add a couple pinches until it just cuts the acidity.  If you use too much, the sauce is sweet and kind of gross.



After seasoning to taste, I make a decision.  Do I keep all, some or none of the garlic in the sauce.  If you are to follow the original "recipe", you take it all out.  If you're life me and live garlic, you leave it all in.  I take my stick blender to the pan and blend everything at this point.  It's not necessary but I like it smooth.



Just before you are going to serve the sauce, chop up the basil.  Don't mutilate the stuff.  It's fine to be in strips.  Add it to the sauce and leave it for another couple minutes.



Add to pasta and serve.

Thanks for mentioning the sugar. I put sugar into my directions but completely left it out of the ingredients.....! My blonde roots are showing.  

I find it funny how similar our recipes are, including the tomato type.  I add meats and other veggies to mine as well but that's my base pomodoro.  I can say I've never added wine though.

I'm really not surprised that they are similar. The ingredients we both listed are the basics. IMHO If you aren't using basil, garlic, onion, parsley, salt, sugar,  you ain't doing it right.



As for wine....that's optional. In my family, red wine is a staple in sauce and I'd hazard a guess that it is in most old time Italian households. If you have ever watched "The Godfather" there is a scene where Clemenza is showing Michael Corleone how to make sause and he specifically tells him to add red wine.

[Anonymous]

As promised, Fash....this is my basic sauce. I use this as the starting point for most of my Italian recipes. Don't hold me to some of the amounts as I usually eyeball it. You will have to experiment a little to fine tune it.




We have never made sauce from scratch using tomatoes. We buy jars of Ragu and add Italian seasoning, oregano, basil, garlic, onions, olives and ground beef. It's pretty good, but no doubt yours is better.

[priscilla1961]

As promised, Fash....this is my basic sauce. I use this as the starting point for most of my Italian recipes. Don't hold me to some of the amounts as I usually eyeball it. You will have to experiment a little to fine tune it.




Why you write gravy?

[Anonymous]

As promised, Fash....this is my basic sauce. I use this as the starting point for most of my Italian recipes. Don't hold me to some of the amounts as I usually eyeball it. You will have to experiment a little to fine tune it.




Why you write gravy?

She's using slang I would say.

[RW]

Mine is fairly similar:



1 small sweet onion

4-5 cloves garlic whole

1 can San Marzano whole tomatoes (I use Passata in a pinch)

5-6 large fresh sweet basil leaves

Salt and pepper to taste

Sugar to taste



I dice the onion and peel the garlic leaving the cloves whole and fry in olive oil on medium-low heat.  The key is caramelizing the onions until they are sweet but not "browning" them.  They should be soft.  Then I add the can of tomatoes, crushing the whole tomatoes as they come out of the can.  I let that simmer for a good 30 minutes.  I taste it at that point and season with salt, pepper and even sugar.



Now you probably think I'm nuts with the sugar but tomatoes can be rather acidic.  To counter that, you can use a LITTLE BIT of white sugar to take the edge off.  I add a couple pinches until it just cuts the acidity.  If you use too much, the sauce is sweet and kind of gross.



After seasoning to taste, I make a decision.  Do I keep all, some or none of the garlic in the sauce.  If you are to follow the original "recipe", you take it all out.  If you're life me and live garlic, you leave it all in.  I take my stick blender to the pan and blend everything at this point.  It's not necessary but I like it smooth.



Just before you are going to serve the sauce, chop up the basil.  Don't mutilate the stuff.  It's fine to be in strips.  Add it to the sauce and leave it for another couple minutes.



Add to pasta and serve.

Thanks for mentioning the sugar. I put sugar into my directions but completely left it out of the ingredients.....! My blonde roots are showing.  

I find it funny how similar our recipes are, including the tomato type.  I add meats and other veggies to mine as well but that's my base pomodoro.  I can say I've never added wine though.

I'm really not surprised that they are similar. The ingredients we both listed are the basics. IMHO If you aren't using basil, garlic, onion, parsley, salt, sugar,  you ain't doing it right.



As for wine....that's optional. In my family, red wine is a staple in sauce and I'd hazard a guess that it is in most old time Italian households. If you have ever watched "The Godfather" there is a scene where Clemenza is showing Michael Corleone how to make sause and he specifically tells him to add red wine.

I've actually never seen red wine used in a basic sauce.  Could be regional.  I also don't bother with parsley but it's good to add.



WTF is with adding oregano to pasta sauce!?  BLECH!  That's more of a Portuguese thing to do unless you're making pizza sauce.



It's also yummy to take a base sauce, add peppercino (chilli) flakes and a drained can of baby clams to make a delicious vongole (clam sauce).

[RW]

Okay so this is pasta sauce but how many of you know how to cook pasta properly?



Put a big pot of water on to boil.  Once boiling, add salt to the water.  This is your only opportunity to season the pasta itself.  The water should be salty enough to remind you of sea water.  Cook your pasta of choice until al dente (in Italian it translate "of the tooth" meaning it should still have a bit of a bite in the centre).  Time differs based on the pasta.



Once al dente, strain the pasta.  DO NOT RINSE WITH WATER OR ADD OIL.  Your sauce won't stick as well if you do.



The hardcore types put the pasta directly into the sauce pan and toss the sauce and pasta together.  I put a bit of sauce in the bottom of a bowl, pour my pasta in, add more sauce and toss.  This prevents the pasta from sticking.  You can also add a bit of cheese to you tossing if you like.  I put extra sauce in a bowl with a spoon and serve that along with the pasta.



If you aren't saucing your pasta right away, rinsing or tossing with a bit of oil may be your only way to prevent sticking.



Bon appetite!

[Anonymous]

As promised, Fash....this is my basic sauce. I use this as the starting point for most of my Italian recipes. Don't hold me to some of the amounts as I usually eyeball it. You will have to experiment a little to fine tune it.




This is saved on memory stick..



But, I notice you don't use mushrooms Renee?

[Renee]

As promised, Fash....this is my basic sauce. I use this as the starting point for most of my Italian recipes. Don't hold me to some of the amounts as I usually eyeball it. You will have to experiment a little to fine tune it.




This is saved on memory stick..



But, I notice you don't use mushrooms Renee?

Again, this is a baseic traditional sauce. You can experiment with as you like. As RW already posted you can add clams, or pepper flakes for heat. I sometimes add ground beef or veal. You can also delete the meat and add heavy cream, parmesan cheese and vodka for a decent ala vodka sauce.

[Renee]

Okay so this is pasta sauce but how many of you know how to cook pasta properly?



Put a big pot of water on to boil.  Once boiling, add salt to the water.  This is your only opportunity to season the pasta itself.  The water should be salty enough to remind you of sea water.  Cook your pasta of choice until al dente (in Italian it translate "of the tooth" meaning it should still have a bit of a bite in the centre).  Time differs based on the pasta.



Once al dente, strain the pasta.  DO NOT RINSE WITH WATER OR ADD OIL.  Your sauce won't stick as well if you do.



The hardcore types put the pasta directly into the sauce pan and toss the sauce and pasta together.  I put a bit of sauce in the bottom of a bowl, pour my pasta in, add more sauce and toss.  This prevents the pasta from sticking.  You can also add a bit of cheese to you tossing if you like.  I put extra sauce in a bowl with a spoon and serve that along with the pasta.



If you aren't saucing your pasta right away, rinsing or tossing with a bit of oil may be your only way to prevent sticking.



Bon appetite!

Also by not rinsing it leaves some risidual starch from the pasta water which makes for a creamer sauce.

[Anonymous]

As promised, Fash....this is my basic sauce. I use this as the starting point for most of my Italian recipes. Don't hold me to some of the amounts as I usually eyeball it. You will have to experiment a little to fine tune it.




This is saved on memory stick..



But, I notice you don't use mushrooms Renee?

Again, this is a baseic traditional sauce. You can experiment with as you like. As RW already posted you can add clams, or pepper flakes for heat. I sometimes add ground beef or veal. You can also delete the meat and add heavy cream, parmesan cheese and vodka for a decent ala vodka sauce.

Oh I see Renee.

 ac_smile

[Renee]

Okay now that you have the sauce and the pasta you have to have meatballs.



Directions

Combine in a bowl the parsley, bread crumbs, basil, salt, pepper, cheese, and red pepper. Mix well.



In a separate mixing bowl combine the eggs and milk. Beat the eggs until they are completely incorporated into the milk. Set aside and keep cold.



In a small frying pan heat the oil and garlic. Cook the garlic until it begins to brown. Remove from heat and let cool to around room temp.



Add the meat to the bowl with the dry ingredients. Mix until slightly incorporated.



Add the egg and milk, warm water and the garlic to the mixture.  Mix until fully incorporated.



Preheat your oven to 350°F



Form your balls into the size of a baseball but not as big as a softball. (I like large meatballs. Small marble like meatballs are a joke) place the meatballs in a large baking dish. Make sure they are not touching each other or the sides of the dish. Bake until the internal temp of the meatballs are 165°F. This usually takes a little over an hour. (DO NOT OVERCOOK). You should come out with about 10 servings.



Once the meatballs come to temperature, put them on a platter pour your sauce on top and serve. You can garnish them with some grated cheese and fresh parsley if you like.



Theses are going to be big balls. It you can't eat big balls cut them in half or even quarters. To be honest, if I'm serving them with pasta, I usually split one with my daughter.



Enjoy ac_biggrin