Marinara Sauce - Cooking in MoneyInfant's Kitchen

A couple days ago @eaglespirit shared her Organic Sausage and Peppers recipe and it made me think of all the great Italian foods I ate growing up near Philadelphia.

Once you get a food craving there's nothing to do but satisfy it right?

But Italian foods aren't really a specialty here in central Texas. What to do? Make my own of course!

C'mon into the MoneyInfant kitchen, where today we'll be creating a fabulous marinara sauce that can be used for so many different things from pasta, to sausage or meatball sandwiches, to a dipping sauce for mozzarella sticks or bread, or even as a pizza sauce.

This really is one versatile sauce, and everyone should have a basic marinara sauce like this in their cooking repertoire.

So, let's get started.

First we gather together ingredients (don't worry a full recipe will be at the bottom).

I'm using whole peeled San Marzano tomatoes for the sauce, so those need to be crushed. Don't be afraid...just get your hand right on in there...

I like having everything ready to go when I start cooking, so I prep everything. Slicing garlic, measuring spices, chopping herbs...so nice to have your mise en place...

First thing we do is get the garlic cooking in the olive oil. Use a low heat here because you don't want to burn the garlic (it'll turn bitter), you just want to release all the amazing garlic-y flavors and soften it up. Keep stirring until the garlic has softened (8-10 minutes).

Pro Tip: Make sure you've got a glass of wine on hand while cooking.

Once the garlic is good and fragrant and soft we add the tomatoes and simmer for 5 minutes.

Next add the salt/pepper/chili flakes and oregano. OMG my mouth is watering!

Let that all simmer for 15 minutes or so and it's ready to go!

We had it on some angel hair pasta and veal Parmesan (recipe coming later), but like I said it can be used almost anywhere a red sauce is needed. Try tossing some shrimp and squid in there for an amazing seafood sauce. Or just dip some crusty bread.

This will make enough for 6-8 people, depending how you're using it. The recipe can be doubled and freezes well (hint hint)

Prep time is roughly 10 minutes and cooking time will be about 25 minutes. Pretty quick for an easy and delicious meal anytime.

Ingredients

• 1 28 oz can San Marzano peeled tomatoes (you can used crushed tomatoes if you want, but the San Marzanos will give you the best flavor
• 1/4 cup water
• 1/4 cup GOOD olive oil (Please use a good quality oil - it really will make a difference)
• 6-10 cloves garlic SLICED thin. Don't crush or mince the garlic. Slice it. Remember Paulie in the prison cooking scene from Goodfellas? You don't have to use a razor, but it needs to be sliced.
• 1 tsp kosher salt
• 1/2 tsp fresh black pepper
• 2-3 full stems fresh oregano or basil. If you can't get fresh use 1 1/2 tsp of dried and adjust for your preference.
• 1/2 tsp red chili pepper flakes (optional)

Instructions

1. Heat the oil on low to medium heat in a large flat bottomed, non-stick skillet or saucepan.
2. Add the sliced garlic and cook 8-10 minutes, stirring constantly to avoid burning. The garlic will get bitter and ruin your sauce if it burns. Don't let this happen. Cook on a low heat and keep stirring.
3. Add the tomatoes and water and simmer lightly for 5 minutes.
4. Add the salt, pepper, basil or oregano and chili flakes if using. Continue simmering for 15 minutes.
5. Taste and adjust seasonings. If your sauce is very acidic you can add 1/2 to 1 tsp of sugar to cut the acidity.