Tomato Meat Sauce

So, I'm on the hunt for the perfect tomato pasta sauce.  I used to think I had it, but that was when I was using my mother-in-law's home-canned tomatoes.  Since I don't have access to those anymore, my trusty recipe is no longer my favorite.

Aaaaaaand, neither was this recipe.  Too much meat and tomatoes, not enough sauce.  There's a big container of it sitting in my freezer.  I'm sure I will be happy it's there one day when I do not feel like cooking.  But, until then, my quest continues.  In all, I think this sauce was just too "chunky" for me.  It tasted good and the kids ate it, and I'm sure my husband would LOVE it.  But, it's not my PERFECT tomato sauce.

Tomato Meat Sauce

8 cups

Heat a large heavy casserole or skillet over medium heat.  Add:

1/4 cup olive oil

2 ounces pancetta or bacon, diced (optional)

If using pancetta or bacon, cook, stirring, until it renders its fat, about 3 minutes.  Add:

1 pound ground beer or sweet Italian sausages, casings removed and crumbled

Cook, stirring, until the meat loses its pink color, about 5 minutes.  Pour off all but 2 tablespoons of fat from the pan.  Add and cook, stirring, until tender, about 5 minutes:

1 medium onion, chopped

Add and stir until fragrant, about 30 seconds:

2-4 garlic cloves, minced

Stir in and cook, stirring, for 2 minutes:

1 tablespoon tomato paste

Add:

Two 28 ounce cans whole tomatoes, with their juice

(1 teaspoon fresh thyme or oregano leaves or 1/2 teaspoon dried)

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon black pepper

1/8 teaspoon sugar

Cook, uncovered, crushing the tomatoes with the side of a spoon to break them up, until they have cooked down and smell very fragrant, about 15 minutes.  Cover and cook over low heat for 30 minutes, stirring often, until the sauce is thickened.  Stir in:

2-3 tablespoons slivered basil or chopped parsley

salt and black pepper to taste.  

my notes:

*i did use the bacon

*i used ground beef, but next time i would use 1/2 lb. beef and 1/2 lb. italian sausage.

*i also ended up using way more tomato paste...maybe almost the whole can?  because it was watery.

*next time i may use 1 28-ounce can of whole tomatoes and 1 28-ounce can of crushed tomatoes, for a better consistency.

Southeast Asian Grilled Flank Steak

tonight's meal comes to us courtesy of Cooking Light. i love Cooking Light! it was super simple (hm, common theme?) and totally tasty! i was completely convinced that my girls would not eat it. i knew they would eat the rice and the broccoli, but the flank steak marinade was pretty spicy! kaia loved it? toddlers are SO unpredictable. layla ate one bite of the steak and started screaming. i guess it WAS too spicy for her. but this is the girl who ate a mango habanero hot wing when she was 9 months old. she may be traumatizzed :).

a couple of things to keep in mind with this recipe: flank steak is not the best cut of meat, so a few things are critical:
1. marinade at LEAST 24 hours. mine marinated more like 36 hours and it was super tender.
2. do not overcook
3. cut it against the grain

Southeast Asian Grilled Flank Steak
Cooking Light July 2008

1 T sugar
3 T fresh lime juice
1 T fish sauce
2 tsp Sriracha (hot chili sauce)
1/2 tsp ground coriander
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 pound flank steak, trimmed
cooking spray
1/4 tsp salt

1. Combine first six ingredients in a large zip-top plastic bag. Add steak; seal and marinate in refrigerator 24 hours, turning occasionally.
2. Prepare grill to medium-high heat.
3. Remove steak from marinade; discard marinade.
4. Place steak on grill rack coated with cooking spray; grill 4 minutes on each side or until desired degree of doneness. Remove steak from grill; sprinkle with salt. Let stand 5 minutes. Cut across grain into thin slices.

Yeild: 4 servings

served with: brown rice with sauteed zucchini and green onions and also steamed broccoli

my notes:
*i did not have enough limes, so i used half lemon juice, it was still good!
*i didn't grill the steak on the outside grill, but used my grill pan on the stove
*i did not use the salt it calls for at the end. the meat has so much flavor! i can't really see why this would be necessary?

anyway, i'd totally make it again.