Chef Jason's Spaghetti Sauce

Confession: I have no idea who Chef Jason is. In pursuit of a great marinara, I stumbled across his video. In the video he prepares this spaghetti. Perhaps he's famous and I am clueless OR he's just a random guy with a good recipe.

Over the last couple years, I've tried a lot of homemade marinara recipes. This is hands down Scott and the girl's favorite. I like it because of the simplicity of the ingredients and preparation. It does not call for fresh herbs (which are yummy) but are expensive. One recipe I tried called for so many fresh herbs, I think it must have been a $45 bowl of pasta in the end. We could have eaten at Olive Garden for that and not had to clear the table and wash the dishes. Also, I can keep the ingredients on hand with no plans of using it immediately and it won't go bad. With that is, the exception of the GARLIC. I always have fresh garlic on hand and it's cheap so I don't count that. Ready go!

Saute:

3 T. olive oil

1 diced onion

1 T. minced garlic (Note: I use way more!!)

1 T. dried basil

1 T. dried oregano

Optional:

Add 1 lb. ground turkey here. (I never do.)

Add:

1/3 c. sherry wine (I typically use whatever wine I have on hand from that last recipe. I've used red, white and zinfidel in this recipe before.)

TWO 28 oz. cans organic crushed tomatoes (Chef Jason said the organic ones are made from better tomatoes.)

15 oz. tomato sauce

6 oz. tomato paste

1 bay leaf

Boil, then simmer on low for 15 mins.

Add:

1 T. salt

1/2 t. pepper

Just before serving add: 1 T. sugar

I promise the end result is quite superior to anything you buy in a jar.

Today, I wanted to take the girls somewhere fun after school, so I dumped all the ingredients in the crock pot and left it for 5 hours. It totally tasted the same as Jason's original recipe.

More Spaghetti Dinner Details

Once at Lascari's (look in white pages under most delicious Italian food) we were served this yummy bread dip. My Abby loves olive oil-bread-dippy-stuff. So I recreated this one at home with surprisingly good luck.
Take this bag of garlic. I either seal it in a foil pocket or a tightly covered dish. Dizzle it with olive oil. Bake at 350 for 30 mins or so. And yes, this smells awesome. Be careful not to spill it because the oil smokes in your oven for weeks. Don't ask how I know that.
It looks like this when you take it out of the oven. Then smash it a bit and salt and pepper it.
I wish I'd taken this picture in better lighting. It's not exactly flattering. We usually drizzle a bit more olive oil at this point. The garlic becomes so sweet when you roast it. Then you dip some hot tasty sourdough or French bread in it. It is a must try!!
Here's the spaghetti sauce in my crock pot. Glad to know that experiment worked well.
This pasta is screaming out for fresh grated parmesan. Can you hear it?

My Big Fat Greek Pasta

I don't think the picture does this baby justice. Recipe came to me from the Dream Dinners Cookbook.

1 lb. rigatoni
1 zucchini- I use 2 if they're small.
1 15 oz. can diced tomatoes- don't drain!
1 T. minced garlic
1 diced red onion
1 1/2 lbs. cooked and diced chicken breast
2 T. olive oil
1 c. crumbled feta cheese
1 t. lemon zest
2 t. dried oregano
1 t. Italian seasoning
1/2 t. salt
1/2 t. pepper
1 c. grated parmesan
1 c. shredded mozzarella cheese

Note: I use WAY more lemon zest and add the juice from the lemon. And if a recipe calls for garlic, you can bet I use more than it calls for.

1. Butter a 13x9.
2. Cook your pasta for slightly less than the package directions because you're going to bake it too. Drain it well. Those rigatonis are full of water.
3. In large bowl, combine everything. (The actual recipe says to top with the mozzarella and parmesan. I can say now that I've done it both ways and I like the results of just toss everything.)
4. Add pasta and toss to coat.
5. Bake at 350 covered for 45 mins and uncovered for an additional 10 minutes.

I have also added sliced olives, but they aren't in this picture.