Meat sauce has made countless trips to Cornell University for Alana and Talia, when they were students there. It freezes well and coupled with some pasta and a green salad, you have a meal.
Ingredients
4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
4 cloves garlic, peeled and thickly sliced
1 pound ground lean beef
28-ounce can crushed Italian plum tomatoes
1 large onion, peeled and studded with 5 cloves
4 or 5 sprigs Italian parsley
1 – 2 teaspoons oregano, to taste
8 large fresh basil leaves
½ to 1 teaspoon Kosher salt, to taste
½ to 1 teaspoon sugar, to taste
Several grindings black pepper
Tomato paste (optional)
Pasta, cooked
Preparation
- Heat oil over medium heat in 3-quart saucepan. Add garlic and sauté gently until light brown.
- Remove garlic and add ground beef to pot. Brown and break up clumps while browning, stirring until the meat is completely golden brown and cooked thoroughly.
- Add crushed tomatoes, browned garlic, onion and parsley to pot. Cover loosely and simmer steadily for 40 minutes, stirring periodically to prevent scorching. Add a bit of water if needed.
- Add oregano, basil, salt, pepper and sugar and cook for an additional 15 minutes. If sauce is runny, thicken with tomato paste, 1 teaspoon at a time. Sauce should not be dry and pasty. If you are going to store the sauce, do not thicken with tomato paste until you are reheating, or it will scorch. Serve with pasta.
Yield: 4 – 6
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