Red Wine and Rosemary Marinara Sauce

Red Wine and Rosemary Marinara Sauce

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 cup chopped onion
4 garlic cloves, minced
3/4 cup dry red wine
2 tablespoons honey
2 tablespoons dried basil
2 teaspoons dried rosemary, crushed
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper
1/4 teaspoon cracked black pepper
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1 (28-ounce) can crushed tomatoes
1 (6-ounce) can tomato paste

Step 1. Heat oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add onion and garlic; sauté 3 minutes. 

Step 2. Add the rest of the ingredients (wine through tomato paste). Bring to a simmer; cook 20 minutes or until thick. 

Step 3.  Whoops, that's it.  Serve over pasta and drink the rest of that bottle of wine. 

Adapted from a Cooking Light recipe from July 1997.

South African Lamb and Tomato Stew

This recipe is courtesy of my friend Dries, who makes some fantastic meat and stew dishes. This uses spices I've never tried in a stew, and it is AMAZING.

South African Lamb and Tomato Stew

2 3/4 pounds lamb meat, cut into 1" cubes (beef can be substituted if desired)

3 14-ounce cans crushed tomatoes
3 tablespoons sunflower or olive oil
2 medium onions, peeled and chopped
½ teaspoon ground ginger
½ teaspoon cardamon
1 teaspoon dried coriander seeds
10 black peppercorns
1 1/2 teaspoons dried fennel seeds
1 1/2 teaspoons dried thyme
3 garlic cloves, pressed or finely chopped
Salt and cracked black pepper to taste
1 tablespoon chutney
¾ cup dry white wine

2 russet potatoes, cubed (peeled if desired - I never do)

Take the coriander seeds, peppercorns, fennel seeds, and thyme and crush into small bits (I used an electric coffee grinder for this purpose).  Mix with the ginger and cardamon and set aside.

Preheat oven to 325F.  Heat the oil in a large oven-safe pot.  Brown the meat and then remove from pan and set aside.  Add the onion and saute until translucent.  Add the meat again and stir through. Add the herb/spice mixture and garlic and stir through.  Add the tomatoes; season with salt and pepper to taste.  Place lid on the pot and cook covered for 3-3½ hours.  Add potatoes after pot has been in the oven for two hours.  Check on the dish approximately every 45 minutes to ensure that it still contains enough moisture (If it looks a bit dry, add some water).  At the end of the 3-3½ hours; add the chutney and white wine and cook uncovered for a further ½ hour.

Spicy Tomato Blue Cheese Soup

You can only make tomato soup look so exciting in photos, but it's delightfully flavourful and delish!  This ain't no Campbell's crap.

Spicy Tomato Blue Cheese Soup

2 tablespoons olive oil
1 medium red onion, finely chopped
Kosher salt
4 garlic cloves, sliced
1 28-oz can San Marzano tomatoes, with their juice
1 1/2 cups chicken stock
3/4 cups heavy cream
2 tablespoons sriracha sauce or other chili sauce
2 tablespoons fresh oregano leaves
2 tablespoons fresh basil
1/2 cup soft blue cheese

Heat the olive oil in a 4-quart pot over medium heat.  When the oil is hot, add the onion and a three-fingered pinch of salt and sweat for 2 minutes.  Add the garlic and continue to sweat for 2 more minutes.  Add the tomatoes, their juice, and the stock and bring to a simmer. (you can add a little more salt here too).  Add the cream, sriracha sauce, basil, and oregano and simmer for 45 minutes.

Pour the soup into a blender, add the blue cheese, and blend until smooth, working in batches if needed.

Strain through a fine-mesh strainer into a clean pot, taste, adjust the seasoning if necessary, and reheat to serve.  The soup will keep, covered in the refrigerator, for a few days.

Minutely modified from here.

Bacon Bolognese

  
Bacon Bolognese

5 strips bacon, chopped
1 medium carrot, chopped fine or grated
1 stalk celery, chopped fine or grated
4 cloves garlic, chopped fine or grated
¾ cup beef broth
1 28-ounce can diced or whole tomatoes (I use San Marzanos and cut them up in the pot)
1 tablespoon oregano
1 tablespoon basil
lots of grated Parmesan

In a large saucepan or dutch oven cook bacon over medium-high heat until brown but not completely done. Add carrots, celery, onion, and garlic, and cook until onions are soft. Add broth, tomatoes, oregano and basil. If using whole tomatoes, snip them up in the pan with kitchen shears. Simmer over low heat for an hour.  Season with fresh ground black pepper.

Serve over hot pasta with loads of Parmesan.

Pasta alla Puttanesca - What Ho!

There're a lot of apocryphal tales of puttanesca sauce having been created by Italian prostitutes, who used the delightful cooking smells of this dish to lure in customers.  While it's a cute, slightly risque story, it's most likely a bunch of hooey, from what I've read - but who really cares, because this sauce is spicy and salty and wonderful.  Whores or no whores, this stuff is good! (there's a phrase I don't get to say very often...)  If your nose isn't running by the time you've finished dinner, you're doing it wrong. 

Pasta alla Puttanesca

1/2 pound pasta
1/8 cup extra virgin olive oil
4 cloves of garlic, minced
1/2 yellow onion, minced
3 anchovy filets, cut into bits (I used anchovy paste, but filets are better)
1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1 tablespoon tomato paste
2 tablespoons capers, well drained
1/3 cup Kalamata olives, sliced
1 14.5-oz can pureed or diced tomatoes

Bring a pot of water to a boil for the pasta.  When the water reaches a boil, pour the olive oil into a big pan with a lid (large enough to accommodate the cooked pasta).  Put the onion, garlic, and anchovies into the cold oil and bring the heat up to medium-high. When it starts sizzling stir it all around.  Garlic can burn quickly, so watch carefully; push the garlic/onion/anchovy mix to one half of the skillet, and in the other half shake in the red pepper flakes to taste and add the tomato paste.  Stir the tomato paste around in its spot for a moment and then stir everything in the skillet all together.  Add the capers and olives and give it a stir, and finally, add the tomatoes.  Bring the sauce to a boil, then cover and lower the heat to low so it simmers. 

Boil the pasta.  While it's cooking, check the sauce and adjust seasoning if needed - add fresh ground black pepper if you like.  Now let it cook with the lid off so it thickens for the remaining time it takes for the pasta to cook.

When the pasta is al dente, drain it and add it to the sauce. Stir well to coat.  Serve with lots of Parmesan cheese!

Lasagna Bolognese

Good lasagna - it's a bit of work, but worth it and will keep you going for days.

 
Lasagna Bolognese
Adapted from Cooks' Illustrated.

For Meat Sauce (Ragù)

1 medium carrot, peeled and roughly chopped
2 medium celery rib, roughly chopped
1 small onion, roughly chopped
4 cloves garlic
1 can (28 ounces) crushed tomatoes
8 ounces ground beef
8 ounces ground pork
8 ounces ground veal
1 1/2 cups milk
1 1/2 cups full-bodied red wine
1 6-ounce can tomato paste
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 tablespoon oregano
1 tablespoon basil

For Béchamel:

4 tablespoons butter
1/4 cup flour
4 cups milk
3/4 teaspoon salt

For Noodles and Cheese:

12 sheets (9 ounces) no-boil lasagna noodles (I use Barilla)
8 ounces Parmesan cheese, grated (2 cups)

For the meat sauce: Process carrot, celery, garlic, and onion in food processor until finely chopped, about ten 1-second pulses, scraping down bowl as necessary.  Heat butter in heavy-bottomed Dutch oven over medium heat until foaming; add the chopped vegetables and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened but not browned, about 4 minutes.  Add ground meats and cook, breaking meat into small pieces with wooden spoon, about 1 minute. Add milk and stir, breaking meat into pieces as small as you can.  Bring to simmer and cook, stirring to break meat into ever-smaller pieces, until almost all liquid has evaporated, 20-30 minutes.  Using potato masher or wooden spoon, break up any remaining clumps of meat (no large pieces should remain).  Add wine and bring to simmer; cook, stirring occasionally, until liquid has evaporated, 20-30 minutes.  Stir in tomato paste until combined, about 1 minute; add tomatoes, salt, pepper, oregano, and basil.  Bring to simmer, then reduce heat to medium-low and cook until sauce is slightly thickened, about 15 minutes. (You should have about 6 cups meat sauce.) Cool meat sauce until just warm to the touch, about 30 minutes.

For the Béchamel: While the meat sauces simmers, melt butter in medium saucepan over medium heat until foaming.  Add flour and cook, whisking constantly, until thoroughly combined, about 1 1/2 minutes (mixture should not brown).  Gradually whisk in milk, increase heat to medium-high and bring to full boil, whisking frequently.  Add salt, reduce heat to medium-low, and simmer 10 minutes, stirring occasionally with heatproof rubber spatula or wooden spoon, making sure to scrape bottom and corners of saucepan. (You should have about 3 1/3 cups. Cool béchamel until just warm to touch, about 30 minutes.

To Assemble and Bake: Adjust oven rack to middle position; heat oven to 425F.  Place noodles in a 13x9-inch baking dish and cover with very hot tap water; soak 5 minutes, agitating noodles occasionally to prevent sticking.  Remove noodles from water, place in single layer on kitchen towel, and pat dry.  Wipe out baking dish. Stir béchamel to recombine; mix 3/4 cup warm béchamel into warm meat sauce until thoroughly combined.

Distribute 1 cup béchamel-enriched meat sauce in baking dish.  Place three noodles in single layer on top of sauce, arranging them close together, but not touching, at center of pan.  Spread 1 1/4 cups meat sauce evenly over noodles, spreading sauce to edge of noodles but not to edge of dish.  Drizzle 1/3 cup béchamel evenly over meat sauce.  Sprinkle 1/3 cup Parmesan even over béchamel.  Repeat layering of noodles, meat sauce, béchamel, and Parmesan cheese 3 more times.  Place final 3 noodles on top and cover completely with remaining béchamel, spreading béchamel with rubber spatula and allowing to spill over noodles.  Sprinkle evenly with remaining Parmesan.

Spray a large sheet of foil with nonstick cooking spray and cover lasagna; bake until bubbling, about 30 minutes.  Remove foil, increase heat to 450F, and continue to bake until surface is spotty brown, about 15 minutes.  Cool 15 minutes; cut into pieces and serve.

Penne Alla Vecchia Bettola

Penne Alla Vecchia Bettola

1/4 cup olive oil
1 medium yellow onion, chopped
3 cloves of garlic, diced or pressed
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
1 1/2 teaspoons dried oregano
1 cup vodka
1 28-ounce can crushed tomatoes
Salt
Freshly ground black pepper
1 pound penne pasta
4 tablespoons fresh oregano
1 cup heavy cream or (to be healthier) fat-free half-and-half
1 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Heat oven to 375F.

Heat the olive oil in a large Dutch oven over medium heat.  Add the onions and garlic and cook for about 5 minutes until translucent.  Add the red pepper flakes and dried oregano and cook for 1 minute more. Add the vodka and continue cooking until the mixture is reduced by half.  Add tomatoes to pot.  Add 2 teaspoons salt and a pinch of black pepper. Cover the pan with a tight fitting lid and place it in the oven for 1 1/2 hours. Remove the pan from the oven and let it cool for 15 minutes. 

 This is what it'll look like, concentrated down into its essential crispy-edged nomminess.

Meanwhile, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil and cook the pasta al dente. Drain and set aside.  Place the tomato mixture in a blender and puree in batches until the sauce is a smooth consistency.  Return to the pan.  Reheat the sauce on low heat, add 2 tablespoons fresh oregano and enough heavy cream to make the sauce a creamy consistency.  

Add salt and pepper to taste, and simmer a few more minutes.  Toss the pasta into the sauce and stir until coated.  Stir in Parmesan cheese. 

Serve with an additional sprinkle of Parmesan and a sprinkle of fresh oregano on each plate.

Adapted from The Amateur Gourmet.

Heirloom Tomato Tart with Parmesan Pepper Crust

...aka "Shitload of Tomatoes 2: Acidic Boogaloo."

Heirloom Tomato Tart with Parmesan Pepper Crust

Black pepper Parmesan pastry:

1 1/4 cups flour
6 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
2 tablespoons cold vegetable shortening
2 tablespoons freshly grated Parmesan cheese
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 to 4 tablespoons ice water

Filling:

Heirloom tomatoes
Goat cheese
Fresh basil leaves
Parmesan cheese, grated (about 2 tablespoons)
Fresh ground black pepper

In a food processor, blend together flour, butter, shortening, Parmesan, and pepper in pulses until mixture resembles coarse meal with some roughly pea-size lumps.  Drizzle 2 tablespoons ice water and pulse again until incorporated.

Gently squeeze a small handful.  If it doesn't hold together without falling apart, add more water, 1 tablespoon at a time, pulsing after each addition until incorporated, continuing to test.  Do not overwork dough.

Turn out dough onto a piece of plastic wrap and wrap loosely, pressing down through the plastic so that dough forms a disk.  Chill in plastic wrap, until firm, for about 1 hour.

Preheat oven to 375F.

Put dough into a tart pan and, using fingers and the bottom of a measuring cup, press dough evenly into place, working up sides to the pan edge.  Use the measuring cup bottom to make a flat surface and get into the edges of the pan to make the thickness even.  Lightly prick tart shell all over with a fork.

Line shell with foil.  Bake in middle of oven 20 minutes.  During this time prepare the tomatoes.  Slice tomatoes thinly, using different kinds for visual variety.  Lay slices on paper towels to soak up the moisture.

Carefully remove foil from the tart shell and bake 10 minutes more.  Remove from oven and fill.

First, layer the basil leaves at the bottom of the shell.  Next, crumble goat cheese on top.  These will help form a layer that will prevent the tomato juice from making the shell soggy.  

Layer the tomatoes evenly over the leaves and cheese (you will probably have room for two layers - do not exceed the height of the shell).  Sprinkle with Parmesan and black pepper.

 

Put back into the oven for 20-25 minutes.  I like to finish off with a few seconds of the broiler to make everything golden and bubbly, but be careful it doesn't brown too much.  Cool on a wire rack, remove the pan and slide onto a plate.

You can see nicely here how the basil and cheese have made a useful barrier between the tomatoes and the crust.

Shitload of Tomatoes

"Every blog post title should include profanity." - P.L.

Well... strictly speaking I haven't grown even half as many as I had in last year's bumper crop, but this is still enough for one soul to cope with.  I needed to make something quick from these as there are again as many on the vine that'll be ready in the next few days.  Oven-roasting them briefly and doing a quick pasta dish is the easiest things to do - I usually have some hot when I make it, and then have the leftovers cold as pasta salad the next day.

There are no hard and fast measurements here, so read through the recipe first to see what you'll need, and then use your common sense when deciding how much of anything to use.

Roasted Tomato Pasta

Preheat oven to 325F.  Slice your small tomatoes in half and larger ones into chunks, placing in a mixing bowl.  Drizzle with a couple of tablespoons of olive oil.  Sprinkle with a little bit of salt, and grind as much black pepper on them as you like.  Mix with a spatula to coat evenly.  Spread onto a rimmed baking sheet, scraping all the juices out as well.

Roast tomatoes for 30 minutes, then turn on the broiler and let them cook until they just start to brown.

While tomatoes are roasting, boil pasta according to package directions.  When both pasta and tomatoes are done, mix them together in a large bowl.  What you add from here is up to you.  I usually drizzle with a healthy dose of chili oil and red pepper flakes, chopped Kalamata olives, a handful of toasted pine nuts, a couple of spoonfuls of capers, and masses of grated Italian cheese (pecorino, Parmesan, Romano, or a combination - whatever you like).  Once it's dished up, adorn with some shredded fresh basil if you have it.

Now... what to do with the next batch...

An Acidic Rainbow

 The 2012 collection, planted today... roll on, summer!

Bolognese of the Gods

Seriously Good Bolognese Sauce

Makes 4-6 servings 2 tablespoons olive oil 2 medium onions, finely chopped (about 1 1/2 cups) 2 celery stalks, finely chopped (about 1 cup) 2 carrots, peeled, finely chopped (about 3/4 cup) 3 cloves garlic, minced or pressed 8 ounces lean ground beef 8 ounces ground veal* 6 strips bacon, finely chopped 3/4 cup red wine 3 cups (approximately) beef stock 2 cans tomato paste 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce Any herbs you fancy - oregano, marjoram, or thyme A few pinches of red pepper flakes Kosher salt and coarsely ground black pepper 1 cup milk If you don't have a food processor to chop the veg, use a cheese grater - it'll be hard going with the stringiness of celery, but it will get it to the fineness needed better than straight chopping.  Just watch those fingers and knuckles - there are enough types of meat in this recipe already! Heat oil in a large heavy pot over medium-high heat.  Add bacon, cook until browned.  Add onions, celery, and carrots. Sauté until soft, 8-10 minutes.  Add garlic and cook for another minute.  Add beef and veal.  Sauté, breaking up meat chunks with the back of a spoon as finely as possible, until browned - about 15 minutes. Add wine; boil 1 minute, stirring often and scraping up browned bits. Add 2 1/2 cups stock and tomato paste, Worcestershire, herbs, and red pepper; stir to blend. Reduce heat to very low and gently simmer, stirring occasionally, until flavors meld, about 1 1/2 hours. Season with salt and pepper if desired.  Warm milk gently in microwave; gradually add to sauce. Cover pot with lid slightly ajar and simmer over low heat, stirring occasionally, about 45 minutes.  Add more stock by 1/4-cupfuls to thin if needed.

This is one of those sauces that is better if made ahead of time and slowly reheated after having a chance to commingle.  Plus it freezes well - allow to thaw, or reheat at very low power in the microwave. Serve over piles of your favourite pasta and top with drifts of freshly grated Parmesan.  And do make sure and drink the rest of that bottle of wine with it. *You can use all beef if you prefer.