Didn't you sing that when you were a kid? I did and I used to regale my parents after dinner with crazy songs and wild stories of the goings on in our neighborhood which wasn't really all that wild, but for my own imagination. I was lucky enough to have not one but 2 haunted houses on the block, a large hill to skate down, a public pool on the corner, a park with high swings and a sand pit, a couple of nosy neighbors, a sort of scary farmer with a Peter Rabbit garden, an avuncular Mr. Green Jeans who made dandelion wine in the basement, a neighborhood bully, hopscotch chalk, roller skates, a brother with girlfriends and working parents so the world was my oyster. It was a kids paradise. I spent my childhood barefoot and freckle faced and didn't go in until supper time. Really though, I only remember one time that my Mother made spaghetti and it was an all day affair but I truly loved it and thought it was a delicacy. Now it's a staple. My real introduction to this sauciers dream came with marriage when I learned how to make it for the first time using my Mother in Law's recipe and then finally I learned how to experiment and came up with my own way of making spaghetti. I think it's one of those things that you just do. Everyone cooks in their own fashion. Some people measure, others throw, I use my senses. I taste, smell and listen. It's probably just a matter of practice and tweaking to get it how you want it to taste. I don't think I've ever made spaghetti the same way twice which is part of the fun. It's adventure cooking! You need a couple of standards:
Homemade Spaghetti Sauce
- 1- #10 Can of Tomato Sauce- get the good kind, it really does make a difference
- 2-3 cans of diced tomatoes- I like the extra oomph of garlic and basil so I that's what I use
- Onion and Garlic and Vegetables of your choosing and seasonings/spices
Basil, oregano, parsley, sugar, salt, pepper, nutmeg, bay leaf
I add what ever I have available. Peppers add sweetness to your sauce, garlic adds depth, mushrooms add a meaty flavor and squashes round it all out. I like them all so if I have them I add them in with a small dice. If you're adding carrots and peppers you probably won't need to add sugar but these are things you work out with your palate when you're tasting as you cook. Sugar takes away some of the tartness of the tomatoes if you're not using sweet vegetables. If you taste it after awhile and feel that there's an emptiness there try a little nutmeg or perhaps a little more garlic. Sometimes that's all is takes to fill up that space.
I saute the vegetables together starting with the onions, I give them a little time alone to meditate in olive oil before I add anything else. I suppose I like some of the principles of Chinese cooking and tend to cook in stages starting with the harder vegetables first and sweat them in stages. I add the spices too at this point. When I have a ton of veggies I put the lid on and really sweat them for 15 minutes or so before adding garlic. Add the garlic at the end, cooking just long enough so that you can smell it, 30 seconds or so, it's delicate and is easily burned. Such a princess.
When the veggies are ready I add the diced tomatoes and sauce and swish the cans out with a little water and add that too. I just let it do it's thing for awhile and mix the meatballs.
I have a couple of different ways to make meatballs. I'm on a veggie kick right now so I buy vegan meatballs because I have yet to make a decent veggie meatball that doesn't resemble tar, asphalt, the stuff on the road at the end of my driveway. There are many varieties of fake meat that one can use to make meat balls and I haven't made a delicious one yet but the frozen ones are tasty so I just drop those sauce that I've set aside for myself.
Homemade Real Meatballs
- 1/2 # of each: ground pork, veal, sirloin
- 2 eggs
- whole wheat bread crumbs- about 2 cups
- grated cheese- Parmesan, asiago, mozzarella, romano, pecorino
- oregano, basil, salt , pepper
- milk
- Worcestershire sauce- 2 count sprinkle- I can't spell or pronounce that but you get it right?
- garlic and onion finely diced and gently sauteed in olive oil
Mix it all up and form giant meatballs
Bake at 350* for 30 minutes or so, they'll cook longer in the sauce but you want to make sure they'll hold up.
I think my husband shuddered a little bit when he saw me using whole wheat bread crumbs in the meatballs but trust me it adds a moistness that can't be beat. After baking those meatballs drop them in the sauce and let the sauce finish off the cooking. The flavors develop over time so a couple of hours on the stove is a good thing and your house will smell so great. When you spoon it over the pasta whoever gets the bay leaf has good luck ! We have 4 kids so I always put 4 leaves in the sauce just for good measure.
If you make it they will come!
All the best! Kate
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