MEATLESS SAUCE INGREDIENTS:
1 1/2 Tablespoon Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1 Cup Onions, diced
1 Cup Celery stalks, diced
1 Cup Carrots, diced
12 ounces of good red wine
5 Garlic Cloves, crushed
2 Tablespoons Oregano
1 teaspoon Thyme
1 teaspoon Basil
1/2 teaspoon Marjoram
1 Tablespoon Salt
1 Tablespoon freshly ground pepper
Canned tomatoes 5, 28 ounces each
8 ounces of tomato paste
MEAT SAUCE INGREDIENTS:
Three to four pounds of Ground Chuck
Two pounds of Ground Veal or Pork
1 Cup Carrots, diced
1 Cup Onions, diced
1 Cup Celery, diced
5 Garlic Cloves
2 Tablespoons Oregano
1 teaspoon Thyme
1/2 teaspoon Sage
1 Tablespoon Salt
1 Tablespoon freshly ground pepper
Who doesn’t love comfort food that evokes wonderful memories and tastes incredible? This is our base Italian Tomato Sauce that cooks for 6 hours, and we use it in many dishes, from Spaghetti, Lasagna, Stuffed Shells and more. My Momma originally taught me how to make Spaghetti sauce when I was just a young girl. I always loved the way the house smelled as it cooked…always sneaking a bite when she wasn’t around.
My husband and I have changed and added a few things over the years, but basically it is still made the same way. We started cooking early this morning because we wanted to make sauce which we will use for Lasagna tomorrow (even making our own Ricotta which is also on this blog)…so we made a big batch so we could freeze half for Spaghetti later with sausage and meatballs.
DIRECTIONS:
In a sauce pan add 1 1/2 Tablespoons of olive oil, saute the onions, carrots, and celery (Mirepoix). In a large pot add the tomatoes, the red wine and the spices in any order. Let cook down for at least 4 hours…6 is even better. We cooked our sauce today and will let it set all night in the fridge so all the different flavors will marry. It really isn’t necessary because it is excellent as is. San Marzano canned tomatoes are the best if you aren’t using fresh tomatoes.
Saute the onions, celery and carrots
I know it’s early, but we had to taste the wine to made sure it was good enough for the sauce.
All the ingredients are added and the sauce will cook down as it simmers.
Directions:
In a large sauce pot add the olive oil, celery, onion and garlic, which is another Mirepoix, for the meat. The meat needs to be flavored before it is added to the tomato sauce. Add the meat to the sauteed Mirepoix along with the spices. When it is browned, transfer it to the sauce.
And that’s it. Your house will smell wonderful and this sauce tastes incredible. We could serve it right now over pasta, but it will be perfect tomorrow in the lasagna.
Spaghetti and Lasagna.
It’s soooo good with spaghetti or with any pasta.
Amazing sauce and so worth making a double batch to freeze. (If you choose to use canning jars, make sure there is at least an inch and a half for the sauce to expand)
*A side note. If you don’t want to make homemade sauce from scratch, just add one half cup of red wine to a can or jar of spaghetti sauce AND SOME GARLIC POWDER. It will definitely do in a pinch. It won’t have this depth of flavor, but it will really be good, and for those in a rush…perfect.
