Homemade Spaghetti Sauce

One of the things I ALWAYS make homemade is Spaghetti Sauce.  If you look at a jar of sauce, the list of preservatives and additives can scare you.  So much in there that doesn't need to be in there.  The secret to great spaghetti sauce is: SIMPLICITY!  So here is my recipe for sauce.   I use this in anything pasta where I need red sauce.

Ingredients:

• 1 medium onion (any color...pick your fav)
• 1/2 cup finely diced carrot
• 4-6 cloves of fresh garlic, finely diced
• 1 lb. ground ________ (pick your fav. meat.  sometimes i use ground turkey, today I used 97% lean ground beef, in the past I used meatloaf mix: 1/3 ground beef, 1/3 ground pork, 1/3 ground veal...pick what you like and use it)
• 2 cups chicken broth
• 1-6 oz can of tomato paste
• 1-28 oz can of diced or crushed tomatoes ( i used whole peeled tomatoes bc its what I had)
• Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• Kosher Salt
• Italian seasoning

Directions:

Heat up a frying pan with tall sides or a stock pot.  Coat the bottom with about 2 Tablespoons olive oil.  Add in diced onion, carrot and garlic.  Saute until they are clear and soft.  Add about 1/2 tsp salt and about a Tablespoon Italian seasoning (its important to season in layers).

Add ground beef and cook until the meat starts to brown.  Once you add the beef sprinkle it with some of the salt.

While the meat was cooking, I used my handy dandy stick blender to puree my whole tomatoes down into a beautiful puree.  BTW...I used all organic tomatoes and stock.  If you compare prices and shop wisely I have found that I can find them all for the same price or minimally more than non-organic, and the benefit is huge.  For example, the whole tomatoes I found on sale at HEB...I usually get diced or crushed, but like a said, a little puree and viola, I have what I need and its organic!  The chicken stock/broth I find at HEB and the everyday price is $1.99 per box.  Swansons broth at HEB is $1.98 per box.  There really is not much consideration needed...Its an easy choice!  All that to say, look around and compare prices...you'd be surprised how affordable you can get organic products.

 Once the meat is browned, I add just a couple of tablespoons of chicken stock to deglaze the pan.  Then In goes the puree of tomatoes.

Once the puree goes in and heats through, I add the tomato paste.  It looks like a big red blob, but it will melt down and create a rich beautiful sauce.  Add the remainder of the chicken stock, about another tsp of salt (or so to taste) and about a tsp or two of Italian seasoning.  As it comes together, keep tasting it and
season it to your liking.

Let it simmer for about 20 minutes or so over low heat, stirring occasionally.

 As it cooks together and the liquid concentrates it will cook down to a beautiful sauce.  It is ready to be used for whatever you like.  If I am using it for lasagna, I usually add a touch bit more liquid, 2-4tbs more stock.  I use the no boil lasagna noodles and the extra liquid in the sauce helps the lasagna to hold together as the noodles absorb it.  I also from time to time will use a cheese grater and add a zucchini in with the carrot and onion.  It is good, just didn't have it to add this time.  If you prefer your sauce sweeter, you can add a little honey or sugar when you are tasting it at the end.  I don't like to do that because I don't like my sauce to be sweet.  That's why I put the carrot in there, it is a natural sweetener and balances the acidity of the tomato, but doesn't add a sugary sweetness.

Today I took the sauce and mixed it with some al dente rigatoni and some mozzerela cheese mixed through and then on top.  Put it in the oven on 350 covered for about 20 min then uncovered for 10.

Hope you enjoy...this made enough for 2 pans of baked rigatoni, you could make two and freeze one, or you could freeze half of the sauce, or if you know how to can, you could can your own sauce.  That is one of my goals this summer, to learn how to can!