Spaghetti Gravy
I have changed this recipe so many times and tried so many variations I feel this sauce is the perfect blend of savory, spicy & sweet. It goes well with any type of pasta but you can't go wrong traditional spaghetti noodles.
Ingredients
- 3 tbsp Olive Oil
- 1 Yellow Onion
- 7 Garlic Cloves
- 1 Celery Stalk
- 1 Whole Carrots
- 2 tbsp Tomato Paste
- 24 oz San Marzano Whole Tomatoes
- 1 lb Hot Italian Sausage
- 8 oz Chicken Broth
- 4 oz Red Wine Cabernet
- 2 tbsp Brown Sugar
- 1 tsp Red Pepper Flakes
- 1 Whole Bay Leaf
- 1 Fresh Basil Sprig
- 1 tbsp Fresh Thyme
- 2 tbsp Fresh Parsley
- 2 tbsp Goat Cheese
- 1 tbsp Sea Salt
- 1 tsp Ground Black Pepper
- 1 lb Spaghetti
Instructions
- Finely dice onion, carrots and celery. Slice garlic cloves into slivers.
- Heat a medium sized pot to medium-high heat. Add olive oil. Once the oil is hot, add onions, carrots and celery. Cook until vegetables soften. Add garlic and cook for 1 minute. Add tomato paste and combine until tomato paste darkens.
- Add the italian sausage to the pot and begin to break up the sausage with a large spoon. Cook until there is no pink in the sausage.
- Pour whole tomatoes into a bowl and break them up using your hands or a wooden spoon. Do not break up the tomatoes too fine. You want them to be a little chunky. Add to the pot with the other ingredients.
- Add chicken broth, red wine, brown sugar, red pepper flakes, bay leaf, salt, and black pepper. Stir all ingredients together. Lay basil sprig on top of sauce but do not submerge. Bring to a simmer for 30 - 45 minutes or until sauce has thickened. Remove from heat.
- Remove bay leaf and basil sprig. Roughly chop parsley and add to sauce. Add thyme and goat cheese. Stir until well combined. Add additional salt and pepper to taste.
Notes
There's no comparison to using homemade pasta, but store bought works fine. Follow the directions on your box of pasta. It's important to liberally season your pasta water with salt before cooking. Drain noodles. Do NOT rinse pasta under water. The starch helps the sauce stick to your pasta. Otherwise you're left with a plate of water under your pasta.