After spending 2 years living on the rugged coast of Northeastern Scotland, a job now takes us to Fairbanks Alaska. Originally from Oregon, I am a writer, a mother, an aspiring frontier woman, a nostalgia junkie, and a book addict. I call myself a trailer wife, which refers to the state of a person (most often a woman) who is caught up in the professional trajectory of their spouse. This blog will chronicle my journey between two places I never, ever, imagined I'd call home.
One of my father's more endearing attributes was his ability to, without a recipe or any real direction other than dad-magic, whip up a batch of delicious spaghetti. It was the one and only thing he could make (other than charring a steak under the broiler) and it was one of my favorite meals as a kid. When called upon, he would stand thoughtfully in front of the pantry, pull out cans and jars at random, and an hour later, be serving up an aromatic slop of crimson noodles.
Thinking of him today, I repressed my type-A tendencies, and attempted to wing it, a la Gary. I have to say, the results here better than I would have dreamed. Using my trusty faux Creuset, here's what I threw together...
1 lb sweet italian sauage
1/2 an onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 can tomato sauce
1 small can tomato paste
1/2 large can crushed tomatoes
3 tsp dried basil
2 tsp dried parsley
1 tsp red pepper flakes
handful brown suger
1 tsp salt
dash of fresh ground pepper
1/4 cup red wine
1 cup chicken stock
Brown the sausage. Throw in onion and cook until limp. Throw in garlic, tomatoes and chicken stock. Mix well. Add basil, parsley, red pepper, salt, pepper and brown sugar. Add red wine last, and let the whole mess simmer for at least an hour (I went for closer to two) stirring pretty frequently.
I used a package of quinoa (pronounced Keen-wa - Hi Cathey) noodles. Be careful about the noodle to sauce ration - the sauce is a little on the rich side, and I think I could have used a bit more noodles and been fine.
DELISH. Seriously, it was so good that Mr-Fussy-Eater-Gussy wolfed it down tonight. THAT is a ringing endorsement. I'm hoping to train Sam in spaghetti making... every dad needs at least one good recipe under his belt, right?
2 comments:
You mean goulash? He always made it with corn, olives, brown sugar, ground beef, and macaroni. He could make breakfast for dinner too. The first time Greg made spaghetti for me I asked him where the olives were-he thought I was a little crazy
You're so right about the goulash. But he did sometimes make it with actual noodles. And yes, I forgot about the breakfast for dinner. But do scrambled eggs with ketchup really count?
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