Author Notes
This is a really flavorful pasta sauce that is packed with veggie goodness and has a nice, subtle heat to it. —peachesplease
Ingredients
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3 pounds
plum tomatoes, peeled, seeded and chopped
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26 ounces
boxed or canned chopped tomatoes
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1 1/2 cups
carrots, diced
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1 cup
bell peppers or small sweet peppers, diced
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4
cloves garlic, diced
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2 teaspoons
oregano
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1/4 - 1/2 teaspoons
crushed red pepper
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1/2 cup
red wine
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2 teaspoons
sugar, if needed
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3 - 4 handfuls
spinach
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basil, fresh
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salt & pepper
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2 tablespoons
olive oil
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goat cheese, for serving
Directions
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Heat the olive oil in a large, heavy pot and add the onion. Saute the onion for a few minutes, until it starts to soften, and then add the carrots, peppers, garlic and oregano. Season with some salt and pepper and saute for approximately 10 minutes.
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Add the fresh and boxed/tinned tomatoes, as well as the crushed red pepper. If you're sensitive to spiciness, go easy on the red pepper. If you like things with a little more heat, go for the 1/2 teaspoons. Stir in the wine and then cover and cook for about 45 minutes - until the tomatoes are breaking down and everything is cooked through.
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Remove the lid and taste the sauce. If the flavor seems a little flat, add the sugar a little bit at a time until the flavor has rounded out.
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Stir in the spinach and basil. This will mute the beautiful, red color of the sauce, but all that veg is super good and one must make certain sacrifices in life.
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Remove the pot from the heat and either transfer to a blender (be careful when blending hot things! Steam hurts!) or use an immersion blender to blend to a consistency you like. Taste and adjust the seasoning with salt/pepper or any of the other herbs. If, for some reason, the sauce appears to thing, put it back on the heat and reduce until it's more to your liking.
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Toss with pasta for super deliciousness. If you really want a treat, serve with a little goat cheese crumbled over the top.
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