You probably wouldn’t guess I’m Italian by looking at me. The blond hair, blue eyes and fair skin come from my German side. The truth is I’m only a quarter paesana, but my maiden name is Musacchio, and my Italian heritage is what was emphasized throughout my childhood.
The most influential element of that heritage was the food. This goes without saying, but Italians know how to cook. If we were visiting relatives on a Sunday, it was likely they’d be serving pasta—usually spaghetti or cavatelli (say: kuh-vah-dells)—with homemade sauce.
Unfortunately, my family’s sauce is not Daniel Fast approved. For starters, it’s flavored with meat (sausage, meatballs or both), and there’s always a little sugar, which is added to cut the acidity. I wondered how I might make a no-sugar-added marinara that wasn’t sour, so I took to the internet. One popular suggestion was to add a grated carrot, but that just didn’t seem authentic. Baking soda was another idea, but that’s not allowed during the Fast, either. Then I found this article, which outlines two keys to a perfectly balanced red sauce:
1. High quality tomatoes, specifically the San Marzano variety
2. Low and slow cooking: Four hours are needed for tomatoes to break down and release their natural sugars.
I thought this would be the perfect job for my Crock-Pot, so I adapted one of my favorite recipes and let it simmer for five hours. The result was a wonderfully mild sauce with no bitterness.
If you like a chunky sauce, you can simply use a spoon to break up the bigger pieces of tomato. I prefer a smooth sauce, so I dump the whole pot into my Vitamix. You could also use an immersion blender or food processor.
Serve over your favorite whole grain pasta and mangia!
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Ingredients
- 1 small onion, chopped
- 5 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 cans (28 oz each) whole San Marzano tomatoes
- 1 can (6 oz) tomato paste
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 1 teaspoon dried basil
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1 bay leaf
Instructions
- Sauté onion in olive oil until translucent. Add garlic and cook for about 1 minute more.
- Combine all ingredients in a slow cooker and cook on low for 4-5 hours.
- For a chunky sauce, break up tomatoes with a spoon. For a smooth sauce, use a blender or food processor.
- Serve with whole grain pasta.