Some pasta sauces are used in more than onerecipe and some of them can be prepared in advance and frozen. I have to admitthat once in a while I prepare 2 or 3 sauces at the time and freeze them. Iadded basic recipes for beef broth and marinara sauce, in case you want to makethem from scratch.
Beef Broth
Ingredients 4-5 pounds beef bones and few veal bones 1 pound of stew meat (chuck or flank steak) cut into 2-inch chunks Olive oil 1-2 medium onions, peeled and quartered 1-2 large carrots, cut into 1-2 inch segments 1 celery rib, cut into 1 inch segments 2-3 cloves of garlic, unpeeled Handful of parsley, stems and leaves 1-2 bay leaves 10 peppercorns
Instructions Heat oven to 375F.
Rub olive oil over the stew meat pieces,carrots, and onions. Place stew meat or beef scraps, stock bones, carrots andonions in a large roasting pan. Roast in oven for about 45 minutes, turning everythinghalf-way through the cooking. Place everything from the oven in the slow cooker and cook on lowfor 6 hours. After cooking, remove the bones and vegetables from the pot. Strainthe broth.
Let cool to room temperature and then put in the refrigerator. The fat will solidify once the broth has chilled. Discard the fat(or reuse it) and pour the broth into a jar and freeze it.
Basic Marinara Tomato sauce
Ingredients 4 cans 28-ounce plum tomatoes
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil plus 2 tbsp. 1/4 lb.pancetta, diced 4 cloves garlic, minced 2 onions, minced
salt, black pepper to taste tsp. Oregano and basil
Instructions Heat 1/4 cup of the oil in a skillet over medium heat.
Add pancetta,and onions and fry for 5 minutes. Add garlic and fry 2 more minutes. Addtomatoes and spices. Bring to a boil. Simmer for 20-30 minutes until thickened.
Store sealed in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to one week,or freeze, for up to 6 months.
Basic Bolognese sauce
This is my grandmas basic recipe.Occasionally she would add some chopped sausage or any other smoked meat,chopped in small pieces.
Some folks add red wine, a pinch of nutmeg andcinnamon to this basic recipe. 1 tbsp. olive oil 1 lb. minced beef 4 slices of bacon 2 onions, diced 3 garlic cloves, chopped 2 carrots, grated 1 celery stalk, diced 2 cans chopped tomatoes 1 cup beef stock 1 can tomato sauce 1/2 cup 2 bay leaves 1 tsp. salt 1/2 tsp. oregano 1/4 tsp. thyme Fry bacon for few minutes over medium heat,add onions, carrots, celery and garlic. thyme Fry bacon for few minutes over medium heat,add onions, carrots, celery and garlic.
After 5 minutes add beef and cook untilbrowned. Add all the remaining ingredients and simmer uncovered until thickens(approx. half an hour to an hour). Discard bay leaves, cool down and freeze.
Basil Pesto
1 cup basil 1/3 cup cashews or pine nuts 2 garlic cloves, chopped 1/2 cup olive oil Process basil, cashews and garlic until smooth. Add oil in a slowstream.
Process to combine. Transfer to a bowl. Season with salt and pepper.Stir to combine.
CilantroPesto
1 cup cilantro 1/3 cup cashews or pine nuts 2 garlic cloves, chopped 1/2 cup olive oil Process cilantro, cashews and garlic. Add oil in a slow stream.Process to combine. Transfer to a bowl.
Season with salt and pepper. Stir tocombine.
Parsley Pestowith Anchovies - Pesto di Prezzemolo
1 cup parsley 2 anchovies 2 garlic cloves, chopped 2/3 cup drained capers 1/2 cup olive oil Process all ingredients until smooth. Transfer to a bowl. Seasonwith salt and pepper.
Sundried Tomato Pesto
3/4 cup sundried tomatoes 1/3 cup cashews or pine nuts 2 garlic cloves, chopped 1/2 cup olive oil Process tomato, cashews and garlic.
Sundried Tomato Pesto
3/4 cup sundried tomatoes 1/3 cup cashews or pine nuts 2 garlic cloves, chopped 1/2 cup olive oil Process tomato, cashews and garlic.
Add oil in a slow stream.Process to combine. Transfer to a bowl. Season with salt and pepper. Stir tocombine.
Pasta Recipes
Spaghetti Carbonara
Serves 6-8 one pound dry pasta spaghetti-cooked aldente 9-10 minutes 8 slices of bacon, sliced 1 cup grated parmesan 1/4 cup chopped parsley 4 eggs
tbsp. Olive oil
pinch of black pepper
pinch of sea salt
3 cloves garlic, chopped
Instructions: While the pasta iscooking, fry bacon in oiled pan.
Mix parmesan and eggs together in a separatebowl. When the bacon is almost crispy, add garlic and fry for one more minute.Reduce heat and stir in pasta and eggs mixture. Season with salt and pepper andsprinkle with parsley.