Did you know???
Tomatoes are high in vitamins – Vitamins A, C, and K, as well as a whole boat load of minerals not to mention they are high in lycopene, a carotenoid, which increases immune response, prevents heart disease, helps clear free radicals from the blood ..
It's important to eat them with a good quality oil or animal fat, as the carotenoids are fat-soluble and can only be absorbed and used by the body if there are sufficient sources of fat present.Well...that is a good enough reason for me to add the butter to my recipe, you could also use 1/4 cup olive oil in its place if you choose, I just love the buttery taste and the velvet texture butter gives this sauce...
You can use canned tomatoes for this recipe, I make mine a crockpot batch at a time as my tomatoes ripen. It is then frozen in quart size plastic containers, or jarred and canned in a hot water bath. It all depends on how full my freezer is at the time...
Add the tomatoes to boiling water for 3 minutes, remove , cool, and core and peel...This is called "Blanching" |
slooooooow, baby.
You let your slow cooker do all the work so you don't have to hover over a stove all day to enjoy this rich velvety pasta sauce.
That’s how all the flavors develop and marry one another in a sweet, luscious concoction.
The alcohol cooks out of the wine, carrots give it sweetness while reducing the acid in the tomatoes, and the butter makes it sooo velvety , I call it my "liquid gold" ingredient!
There is something magical that happens between the tomato, beef and wine flavors ...trust me , this may take some time, but nothing duplicates the layers of flavors in this sauce . I experimented for years before finding just the right ingredients..
You surely should make this recipe your own...Sometimes I add my meat before I freeze this, and sometimes when I have thawed it out..Same thing with mushrooms and red pepper flakes. I have found over the years to just make it basic, and then I can decide when I make my meal if I want to add chicken, sausage, hamburger, or no meat at all. Besides over pasta , stuffed shells, and lasagna it also makes an awesome sauce for Swiss Steak, Stuffed Peppers, Spanish Rice, etc. I even use it for a base in my chili, and soups all winter.I honestly cannot remember the last time I bought a jar of sauce from the store.My hubby cannot do anything spicy, but I love a "kick" so I just add my pepper flakes to my plate before dinner..Make it your own custom for your family.
1/3 cup fresh Basil
1 Carrot
2 Bay leaves
8 cloves Garlic
3 Onions, medium
4 sprigs Oregano
2 sprigs Parsley
10 lbs Tomatoes
1 sprig Rosemary
1/2 bottle red wine
1 stick butter
2 diced sweet peppers
2 T. beef bouillon
Then I use my immersion blender to break everything up to a silky sauce.You could leave it chunky, but by hubby does not like chunky tomatoes, so smooth it is for us..Let it cool, package label and freeze. This is good for a year, but mine never make it that long.
This is how mine looks in the beginning before giving it a stir..and after 12 hours below... |