Scratch Spaghetti Sauce 3 Ways
Your marinara sauce just made three new friends.
I developed my classic marinara sauce recipe because I’m not a fan of store-bought, and this year I decided to take it up a notch by expanding on flavour options. I’m convinced the portabella mushroom is my favourite until I taste the spinach sauce, and then I have the sun dried tomato variation and I fall in love all over again.
I’ve already got eyes on next year’s tomato harvest and exploring new ideas like roasted pepper, sweet Italian sausage, and a spicy Chorizo blend. Whatever variation you try, remember this sauce cans beautifully and can be used for virtually any recipe that calls for a tomato or spaghetti sauce.—CFG
Ingredients:
Base Marinara Sauce:
2 cups of grape or cherry tomatoes
1 cup of fresh basil
1/3 cup of fresh oregano (optional)
6-8 cloves of garlic, peeled
2 green onions (tops and bottoms)
2 shallots
2 cans of tomato paste (156 ml)
1/2 cup of extra virgin olive oil
Salt/pepper to taste (I start with 1/2 tsp of each)
Spinach Variation
454 g/1lb of fresh spinach
2 large pinches of sea salt
1 tbsp olive oil
Sundried Tomato Variation
1 1/2 cups sun dried tomatoes in oil
Portabella Mushroom Variation
5 large portabella mushrooms
3 tbsp olive oil
3 pinches ground sea salt
Directions:
Note: This recipe makes ~4 cups of marinara sauce/2 500ml jars
Place all base ingredients into a food processor.
Blend until fully mixed.
Set aside.
Spinach Variation:
In a large pan, add 1 tbsp of olive oil and bring to medium heat. Add 1lb (454 g) of fresh spinach and gently mix with tongs until leaves are completely wilted. Remove from heat and drain any excess liquid.
Allow spinach to cool (~5min) and then roughly chop. Add spinach and 2 large pinches of sea salt to food processor and base marinara sauce and blend for 5-7 seconds (or until fully incorporated).
Add additional salt and pepper to taste.
Serve and enjoy.
Sun Dried Tomato Variation:
Add 1 cup of sun dried tomatoes with oil into food processor and blend for 5-7 seconds (or until fully incorporated).
Roughly chop the remaining 1/2 cup of sun-dried tomatoes and stir into sauce.
Add salt and pepper to taste.
Serve and enjoy.
Portabella Mushroom Variation
Remove stems and gently wipe the mushrooms clean with a paper towel.
Roughly chop 3 of the mushrooms. In a large pan add 2 tbsp of olive oil and bring to medium heat. Add the chopped mushrooms and 2 pinches of salt and stir occasionally until mushrooms are fully cooked. Remove from heat and drain any excess liquid.
Allow mushrooms to cool (~5min) and then add to the food processor and base marinara sauce. Blend for 5-10 seconds (or until fully incorporated).
Roughly chop remaining 2 mushrooms into ~1/2” chunks. In the pan, add 1 tbsp of olive oil and bring back to medium heat. Add the remaining mushrooms and 1 pinch of salt; stir occasionally until mushrooms are fully cooked. Remove from heat and drain any excess liquid.
Allow mushrooms to cool (1-2min) and then stir into sauce.
Add additional salt and pepper to taste.
Serve and enjoy.
Notes:
Store your sauce in an airtight container/jar in the fridge for ~1 week.
For canning in jars, process for 10 minutes. (Be sure to follow all standard canning guidelines.)
