I may be the only person on the planet that has never made homemade spaghetti sauce, but there you have it. I made it recently and we loved it so much I had to do an encore. While I don’t have a firm recipe, I wrote down what I did the first time and used it for a guideline the next time. In spite of little changes, it was delicious both times. I feel a little silly blogging about something so commonplace, but maybe there’s someone else out there that just gets it from a jar and has no clue what they’re missing.
To start, I chopped my onion, garlic and peppers
The garlic was the last few cloves from last summer’s crop. It had to be photographed . . . I will miss the beautiful pink-skinned cloves. (a moment of silence, please)
Additionally, I rinsed (and rinsed and rinsed) the dried mushrooms. There was no need to further rehydrate since they would be simmering for hours.
Once everything was chopped, I sautéed the veggies in olive oil (with a little butter for added flavor) until they started to soften; then added the Italian sausage and broke it up to sauté with the veggies. While that was cooking, I snipped the mushrooms with scissors into the mix. (they’re a little rubbery, so scissors work perfectly)
When the meat was completely browned, I added the canned tomatoes, tomato paste, 1 can of water and 4-6 ounces of red wine – but added more later when I was refining the sauce. As I said, this is more of a guideline than a strict recipe – taste is such a personal thing. My taste buds like wine.
Once everything is well combined, it’s time to season. I started with a dry Italian mix that has oregano, thyme, marjoram, rosemary, basil, savory & sage. Some people like to add sugar to their sauce, I do not.
And since you can’t take the Texas out of the girl, I added a shake or two of chile flakes and ground black pepper to make it zippy. Add a teaspoon of salt and stir. Resist over-salting because it will get saltier when the sauce has reduced.
Bring to a boil and then let the sauce simmer, covered at low temp for about an hour so that the sausage seasoning seeps into the sauce. Taste and adjust seasonings if needed and continue to simmer, covered for a couple of hours. At this point, remove the cover and let the sauce thicken if necessary.
Serve over spaghetti noodles and add a generous grate of parmesan cheese.
Mangiare Bene!
My recipe Guidline for Spaghetti Sauce
1 lb Italian sausage (hot or sweet according to your taste)
2 cans diced tomatoes
1 small can tomato paste
1 onion diced
3-4 cloves garlic diced
2 cups dehydrated mushrooms or 2 cups fresh sliced mushrooms
Red wine to taste – about 1/2 to 1 cup (ish . . . esque)
Water as needed
1 cup of diced red, green and or yellow pepper
2 -3 Tbsp dry Italian seasonings
1 tsp red chile flake (optional)
1 Tbsp sugar (optional)
Olive Oil
Butter
Sea Salt
Fresh ground pepper
(Don’t forget spaghetti noodles and parmesan)
My Year on the Grill said:
I love making spaghetti sauce. This looks perfect, nice and thick… fry me up some meatballs and I am there
Vickie said:
I’ll set an extra plate! Thanks for stopping by and reading – it’s always nice to get some feedback on my experiments.
buffalo dick said:
It’s fun to make it it the way you like it, instead of settling for a jar blend that’s just OK…
Vickie said:
Or worse, believing all these years that I didn’t like red sauce on pasta (duh)! I LOVE red sauce, now! Thanks for stopping by – always fun to read your comments.
Larry said:
It’s looks delicious and I like to make my own – you can get just the taste you want that way. It’s kinda like pizza – just put what ever you like in except put it on bread shaped like little tubes rather than a thin flat round.
Vickie said:
Exactly! I used part of this sauce as a tomato-y dip for crispy parmesan bread. I topped it with melted mozarella cheese and fresh strips of basil it tasted a lot like pizza. Thanks for reading and commenting, Larry.
leaannbrown said:
Fabulous! I used to buy a jar of Ragu (if you tell anyone I’ll have to kill you) and then doctor it up abit. One day I decided to make it. So I used canned tomatoes and doctored them up and it worked like a charm. I loved it so much that I’ve never looked back. It’s so easy and the flavor just doesn’t even compare. I sautee onions and garlic then add the tomatoes. I take a potato masher and give those tomatoes a couple of quick crushes. I add a tad of sugar or catsup, the spices, some water. I like to add about a teaspoon of fennel seeds too and maybe a little more basil on top of that Italian seasoning. And never forget that Italian sausage – yum. I love your addition of wine and the mushrooms. And next time you bet I’ll be adding some red pepper flakes! and then there’s that butter…….Girlfriend thanks to you my sauce has just improved.
Great post and photos.
leaannbrown said:
and by the way, whats up with that cute little measuring spoon???? 🙂
Vickie said:
I’m so flattered . . . you are my cooking IDOL! I have never bought fennel seeds but will now and use them next time; thanks to you my sauce will be better too. Thanks much for the comments and compliements! (and the spoons were a gift from my son – cute, huh? 🙂
Larry said:
I made your cilantro salsa recipe today (eating it as I type this), but decided to halve the recipe in case it wasn’t for me. I usually write out the halved recipe but decided I could do it on the fly – error. I put in double red pepper and garlic powder – was able to scrap a little of the garlic out. The heat level works ok and it’s a little garlicy, but I like it and will make it again. I think I feel a pulled pork breakfast burrito coming on with this salsa inside it.
Vickie said:
Oh man, I’ll bet that was garlicky – hope you didn’t have a date with the missus! 😛
Let me know how it goes with breakfast burritos.
doggybloggy said:
this is the recipe I use – a little of this and a little of that – taste it till its good and then serve it up…yours seems way more organized and you have the results to prove it!
Vickie said:
I always try to make a couple of notes in case I come up with something good. It’s loosely organized. And thanks! Flattery will get you fed!
Billy said:
Vickie, looks good! Where did you get the fork in the picture? It is the same pattern as Nancy’s grandmother had. Nancy inherited it from her. Way cool!
BTW. This gave me the munchies!
Vickie said:
Billy . . . thanks for stopping by! I collect mismatched silver from esate sales, antique stores, gifts from friends, etc. They’re sort of shabby chic. Cool that Nancy’s grandmother had this pattern. I think it’s the only piece I have with that pattern. LOL – I’m addicted to food porn. 😛
Chris said:
Don’t feel silly blogging about that! Making a homemade classic like this is an achievement. I made the most perfect scrambled eggs last weekend and was so proud. Simple and done a million times? Sure, but I had never done better so I was excited.
I also like recipe “guidelines” like you used. It always comes out the best.
Vickie said:
Thanks! I felt that way, too. Food that tastes so good it makes your eyes widen, had to written about! 🙂
Sally Janover said:
Vickie, you have a beautiful blog. Great pix and wonderful recipes.
I want to invite you to be a friend on my Facebook. I don’t have a blog yet.
Vickie said:
Thanks, Sally! I’m so glad you stopped by and checked it out – I will find you on FB. 🙂