Farmer’s Market Marinara (Old World Style) – aka. Totally Awesome Spaghetti Sauce

This is a chunky, veggie rich marinara recipe to serve with pasta, meatballs, and on! The Fresh Harvest Balsamic makes it shine! Use the San Marzano tomatoes (many different brands) as they truly make the sauce taste fresher than traditional canned tomatoes. 

 Ingredients

• 1 medium white or yellow onion (finely chopped)
• 1 green bell pepper (finely chopped)
• 4-5 cloves garlic (minced)
• 1 large Zucchini Squash (finely chopped)
• 1 small Eggplant (finely chopped)
• 3 tbsps. Fresh Harvest Tuscan Herb Olive Oil
• ¼  cup Fresh Harvest Neapolitan Herb or Traditional Balsamic
• ½  cup full bodied red wine
• 2 (28-ounce cans) San Marzano Italian Tomatoes
• 2 (6-ounce cans) Organic Tomato Paste
• ½ teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1 teaspoon Celery Seed
• Dash of salt (optional)

(Also optional, brown 1 lb lean ground beef and add to sauce)

For the herbs you can use either of these options:

• 3  Tbsps. dried Italian Seasoning

Or you can use fresh herbs:

• 1 cup packed fresh Basil leaves (minced)
• ½ cup packed fresh Oregano leaves (minced)
• ¼ cup packed fresh Parsley leaves (minced)

Directions:

Heat the Olive Oil in a large sauce pan or Dutch oven. Add the onion and sauté over medium heat until translucent (about 3-4 minutes). Add the minced Garlic and cook 1-2 minutes longer. Then add the zucchini and eggplant and cook for 5-8 minutes until slightly translucent.

Add the tomatoes, Balsamic, wine, celery seed, pepper and salt. Stir well and then add the tomato paste. If using dried Italian seasoning, add that now and stir well.  Bring to a slight boil. Then reduce heat to lowest setting, cover and let simmer for 30 minutes, stirring frequently.

If using fresh herbs, add them after the first 30 minutes of simmering and then simmer covered for an additional 20-30 minutes or longer. This can simmer for up to an hour or more, but you don’t want it to burn. If it’s too thin, simmer without the cover and it will reduce nicely over time. Stir frequently. Serve over pasta, meatballs, on bread, and on!

This basic sauce keeps well in the fridge for up to a week.