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| From Special Sauce |
Although I didn't experiment for this special sauce challenge as much as I would have liked, there was sauce had on Nathaniel's birthday, December 24.
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| From Special Sauce |
With a tomato sauce, it is important to make sure the tomato shines through. Like most of the sauce recipes I was coming across, I used canned whole Italian tomatoes and crushed them by hand. This time I took that literally, and spent fifteen minutes rubbing the tomatoes apart with my fingers. What I had left looked a lot like crushed tomatoes, but I have to believe that there is a reason recipes ask you to start with whole ones. Who knows what ends up in the crushed tomato cans, after all.
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| From Special Sauce |
I have been restocking my pantry with a variety of whole Italian tomatoes, so I used two cans of them, just randomly picking one of each. I also had two leeks in the fridge and decided to add them kind of last minute. I like the flavor of leeks a lot, and felt like it couldn't hurt the sauce!
The best-tasting sauce throughout this challenge had been the basic tomato sauce by Mario Batali, but the texture was problematic. I took his basic recipe and made changes to it based on the other conclusions I have drawn throughout this experience, such as wanting more carrot, needing a touch of acidity (that's what the lemon does), and seasoning at more than one point in the cooking process. So here it is!
Nathaniel Sauce
6 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
1/2 yellow onion, 1/4-inch dice
2 leeks, thinly sliced, well rinsed, and well drained
6 garlic cloves, peeled and thinly sliced
3 tablespoons chopped fresh thyme leaves, or 1 tablespoon dried
1 medium carrot, finely grated
2 (28-ounce) cans peeled whole tomatoes, crushed by hand and juices reserved
Juice of 1/2 lemon
Salt
Your choice of pasta, cooked al dente (we like cavatappi best)
1/2 cup basil leaves, rolled and cut into a chiffonade
Grated Parmesan
In a 3-quart saucepan, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the onion, leeks, and garlic, and cook until soft and light golden brown, about 8 to 10 minutes. Add the thyme and carrot, and cook 5 minutes more, until the carrot is quite soft. Season with salt for the first time (try 2 tsp here). Add the tomatoes and juice and bring to a boil, stirring often. Lower the heat and simmer for 30 minutes until as thick as hot cereal. Add lemon juice, and season with salt. Blend in food processor, blender, or with hand-held immersion blender, adding a little water if you desire a thinner texture (I just blended and served as is).
When ready to use, the cooked pasta should be added to a saucepan with the appropriate amount of sauce, while stirring in the basil. Garnish with cheese.
This sauce holds 1 week in the refrigerator or up to 6 months in the freezer.I had about a cup of sauce left over after adding this to a pound of pasta, and used it for homemade pizza a few days later.
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| From Special Sauce |
And because this entry wouldn't be complete without it, here is Nathaniel with his sauce!
