The sauce was a little soupy after 2 hours, so we followed protocol and took the lid off. An hour later we started boiling the noodles. Of course there was the boil-over fiasco. While I was talking on the phone with my mom. That was...Fun. Since Kristie says she'll kill anyone who overcooks the noodles, I decided to set the timer on the microwave (yes, the microwave will time things for 9 minutes).
While waiting for the noodles, I poured myself a glass from the left over Chianti and started the oven to make "poor man's garlic bread" Also known as Texas Toast with butter and some garlic powder. Shut up. It reminds me of being a kid when my mom used to make garlic bread that way (of course, if I had been on top of my game today, I would have oven roasted some of the garlic cloves and then spread that on the bread instead, but whatever, i forgot).
Anyhow, the review:
It was a very good sauce, and I would recommend that people try it at least once, and then change the amounts of spices to make it their own. My only disappointment was that I was expecting it to be stellar after having simmered for 3 hours. When I make it next time, I'll make sure that we use actual Italian sausage and I'd skip the chili powder. I would also use some more oregano (I think the stuff I've got right now is a little weak), and I'd use more basil (keep in mind that I used fresh basil so the amount was only an estimate). I might also throw in some fennel seeds.
Shawn thoroughly enjoyed the sauce and said it was the best meat sauce I've ever made (which is true except for this one time in high school, and that time I added too much wine and then had to add more of the other spices to even out the flavors...and it was the best spaghetti sauce evah). He thought the wine worked well, which is saying something because he normally will taste the wine and complain about it--the only other time I've made spaghetti sauce that he hasn't complained about the wine was when I used some leftover Shiraz from French Onion Soup night. His only lament about the sauce is that the recipe makes so much that theres a ton left over--2 full jars left over (normal size of the Classico).
3 comments:
This sounds fun. I love to cook with wine. But I never thought about putting it in the food.
Mother of ass! I had no idea about this blog either. How is it that you're so modest, whereas I shamelessly pimp my blog (including posting it on a diet website, which is technically a really shitty thing to do, but I have zero moral code)? Anyway, I have now read your review and have to say a few things.
#1-It takes a long time because it's meant to be simmered on a weekend day when you're lounging or baking or gardening or something. Then, because it makes so much (as it's designed to do) you bag up the two other portions and FREEZE them. That way you only make it like once a month.
#2-There was no mention of chili powder in said recipe, but it's not a terrible idea
#3-I used fresh basil too (tons). I just said "dried" for ease of understanding.
Other than that, BRA-friggin-VO! I am very proud of you, and so much appreciate your thorough vetting of the recipe. Also, I've RSS-fed this blog because I think it's interesting. And funny.
Dave: As I said a few blogs ago, I was almost picturing that I would get completely sloshed on red wine and then attempt to cook and hilarity would ensue. But I figured maintaining a certain level of drunkeness would take much more than one measly bottle of wine. One in which I had to share with the sauce. And I am cheap. Thus it didn't happen.
Kristie: Ah! FREEZING! I did not think of that. Hell, it took me until I was making cookies two weekends ago to realize I can freeze the dough. Then I don't have 4 dozen cookies sitting around. We did put the extra sauce in empty jars. And we've been eating spaghetti for the last week. You're lucky it's my favorite food.
Also, thanks for saying I'm funny. I do occasionally try to do so intentionally.
Post a Comment