Oct 10, 2017 |
by Molly Jo Realy @MollyJoRealy
I know. You’re thinking, what the heck? A recipe for sauce? That’s just . . . lame. Or something. I mean, all you do is open a jar. Am I right? That’s all there is to it.
But it’s not. Trust me.
A few blog posts ago [translate: years], I shared my recipes for infused olive oil and polenta. But I never shared the awesome sauce that goes with it.
Y’all ready for this?
Frankly, My Dear . . . : The Best Pasta Sauce. Period.
Now, this is a post for pasta sauce, but let’s recap the food it covers.
- Pasta: Boil the water and a dash or two of olive oil. Add the pasta. Boil 8-10 minutes or until al dente. That means until it doesn’t stick to each other, but it also isn’t limp like a piece of cereal left in milk for more than a few minutes.
- Polenta: So, first, ya wanna take your infused olive oil and heat it in a covered skillet until it’s “ouch” ready. That means for goodness sake, be careful when you lift the lid and don’t touch it! Slice the polenta into coins and fry for 6-7 minutes until golden and crispy. The longer the fry, the better the crunch. Capice?
Okay. Got your base food ready? Let’s make some sauce!
The Best Pasta Sauce. Period.
Ingredients
- 1 large jar pasta sauce. I like Newman's Own Sockarooni as a good starter.
- 1 small can diced tomatoes. If seasoned, use garlic, oregano or other Italian flavors.
- 1/2 clove garlic, pressed like a good Italian should do.
- 1/2 green bell pepper, diced
- 1/2 red bell pepper, diced
- 1/2 medium onion, you guessed it- diced
- 1/2 cup mushrooms. No, not diced. Sliced or pieces. Okay. I guess that means diced.
- 1/2 cup red wine.
Instructions
- Combine all ingredients.
- Heat thoroughly. [Note: the flavors are better if you let sit in a slow cooker for about two hours, stirring occasionally.]
- Serve on pasta or polenta.
- Or just eat with a large spoon.
3.1
https://franklymydearmojo.com/2017/10/10/recipe-the-best-pasta-sauce-period/ (c) 2012 Frankly, My Dear... New Inklings Press
That’s it. Easy-peasy. And the clean up? Fuggedaboutit. [That means hakuna matata, no worries.]
How do you serve your sauce?
TWEET THIS: The Best Pasta Sauce Recipe. Period. @RealMojo68 #recipe #Italian #sauce #foodie
With a big fork and lot of garlic,
Happy eating!
~Molly Jo
And Frankly, My Dear . . . That’s all she wrote!
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Aug 18, 2014 |
My Real Italian Kitchen: Polenta and Sauce
WinCo is still one of my favorite places ever. My last two grocery shopping trips stocked my pantry so thoroughly, I’ve not been back for well over a month. When you’re on a budget for time as well as money, that’s a big deal.
Last month, I picked up a tube of ready-made polenta, with absolutely no idea what to do with it. It stared at me from the refrigerator drawer every morning. It begged me for attention every evening. I still wasn’t sure how to prepare it. Luckily, WinCo directed me to their polenta recipes on their website, including how to make it from scratch. I also searched the internet for other creative cooking ideas.
Polenta is an Italian cornmeal that can be made into a porridge, or sliced for baking or frying. As a porridge, it’s a delicious breakfast or side dish. You can slice it extra thin to add to your deli sandwich. Fried or baked, it can replace pasta or rice for an easy lunch or dinner. It’s even a great mini breakfast when topped with maple syrup.
The Polenta I picked up was already seasoned with basil and garlic, so that ruled out a breakfast porridge. For my first experience, I opted to slice and fry the polenta on my stove, and top it with a blend of pasta sauce fortified with additional spices and an extra can of sliced mushrooms. I began by slicing the tube of polenta into 1/2-inch round slices.
San Gennaro Polenta
My favorite pasta sauce is Newman’s Own Sockarooni. It has the perfect balance of seasonings and vegetables. I often add browned ground meat to the mix, or serve it over meatballs. For this polenta dinner, mushrooms were the extra touch.
Sauce and Mushrooms
While the sauce simmered, I heated up my large frying pan with about 1/2-inch of olive oil. Of course, Bertolli Extra Virgin Olive Oil is my favorite. It has just the right blend of natural oil and flavor without a heavy, greasy taste or feel.
Bertolli Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Once the oil was nicely heated, I carefully placed the polenta slices in and covered them to minimize splattering. After five minutes, it was time to fry the other side. This was tricky, because even though I love being in the kitchen I’m not a big fan of cooking with a lot of hot oil. I managed to flip the polenta with very little mess, and after another five minutes of covered frying, I transferred it to a paper towel to absorb the excess oil. In just two more minutes, dinner was ready.
Served with a simple slice of garlic toast and a refreshing Pellegrino water, my Italian dinner was complete.
My Real Italian Kitchen: Polenta with Sauce
The polenta was on sale for less than $4. The sauce was $2.50. Mushrooms $0.69. Garlic toast $6 for 12 slices. The most expensive part was the Pellegrino, at an average of $0.83 per bottle. The polenta dinner, while small in size is big on taste. We were able to get five good meals plus a little extra for a small snack. (Dipping a fried polenta in sauce is heaven, in case you were wondering.)
That’s an approximate $2.75 per plate. Not bad for a delicious Italian meal.
Polenta is so versatile in both flavor and use, no wonder it’s the food of choice for Northern Italy. And, in My Real Italian Kitchen.
San Gennaro Polenta with Basil and Garlic
And Frankly, My Dear . . . that’s all she wrote!
You may also enjoy reading:
Stocking up the Pantry
Stocking up the Cabinet
Too Hot to Cook (June’s Meal Plan)
WinCo Wins: Lunch for a Dollar!
WinCo Wins
Jun 3, 2013 |
It’s been a few months since I’ve written a Meal Plan post. Based on the success of my recent monthly WinCo trips, I’ve had enough foods in the freezer and pantry to not have to buy too much. So I’ve been winging it; making what I can find. Occasionally, I’ve put together some meals like this hearty chicken and pasta dinner.
Chicken & Pasta
I always keep frozen salmon filets in the freezer. Last month, I bought a 5 lb. bag of chicken breasts (admittedly not from WinCo). Sure, it cost nearly $17, but with 20 breasts, that’s less than $1/piece.
So my Plan for June is to eat more chicken. I don’t have an entire month of menus planned out. But I have my Aroma Rice Cooker. And I have a plan.
Again with the savings I find at WinCo, I’ll supplement what I already have and make some wonderful meals. My goal is to make some scrumptious dishes without having to cook too much in the summer heat. Some of the meals I’ll make more than once because they’re easy and delicious.
Not only do I want to save money, I want to eat better. My eczema has been rapidly improving as I now have prescription-strength ointment and have been eating less fast foods which, I’ve discovered, can significantly induce a flare up. So, for the health of my body and my wallet, June will be a Home-Cooked Meal Month.
Here’s my tentative meal plan (each meal is followed by how many days we can eat from one preparation by how many times I’ll make it for a total amount of dinner days):
- Chicken and Pasta (as pictured above), 2 x 2 = 4
- Steamed Chicken and Rice, 1 x 4 = 4
- Slow Cooker Chicken & Kraut, 3 x 2 = 6
- Steamed Salmon and Rice, 1 x 4 = 4
- Spaghetti with sauce and garlic toast, 2 x 2 = 4
- Baked Frittata (usually a weekend meal for brunch as well), 2 x 2 = 4
That leaves four days with no menu plan. We like to keep a few “open” days on the calendar. We’ll eat at least twice at my Mom’s house, or order a pizza on Pay Day, or just not feel like eating. I know, pizza. But it’s not regular fast food. And if I only eat it once a month, I should be okay…
With this great plan, I already have the main components. My grocery list is just the sauerkraut, cream of chicken soups, and frittata ingredients. I’ll include a cheap dessert like Jell-O and Cool Whip, pudding, or a few of Dot’s favorite cookies. We always keep ice cream in the freezer; especially in the summer.
It’s my goal to spend less than $100 this month, including the cat food, litter, and household needs. At a regular grocery store this would be nearly impossible. But, as I so often like to say, “WinCo Wins!”
*Cheater Meal: We did treat ourselves to Red Robin yesterday since I won a gift card from work.
Ava-Cobb-O Salad at Red Robin
Note, I ate the A-va-Cobb-O and Chicken salad.
So, as I also like to say, “Happy Eating!”
What’s on your plate?
And Frankly, My Dear… that’s all she wrote!
You may also enjoy reading:
WinCo Wins
WinCo Wins: Lunch for a Dollar!
My Bento Box: Part I
How To Eat For Free And Have Fun Doing It (Or, How Printing Coupons Gave Me a Really Great Weekend!)
My February Meal Plan
