Veggies? Yep - They're In There!

I had some vegetables to use up, normally I don't put that many into my pasta sauces, but I will more often. Jamie's not a vegetables fan, but by finely dicing the celery and shredding the carrots, I may have slipped them by him. With the different veggies, roasted garlic and fresh herbs, you certainly don't miss any meat.

Roasted Garlic Marinara Sauce

1 cup mushrooms, sliced

1/2 cup onion, diced

2 stalks celery, diced

1 carrot, shredded

14.5 oz can Italian stewed tomatoes, crushed by hand, use about 1/4-1/2 cup of water to rinse out can

1 28 oz crushed tomatoes

14 oz tomato sauce

3 tbsp tomato paste (more if needed)
4 large cloves of roasted garlic, squeezed into a paste

1/2 tsp sugar
kosher salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
1/2 cup red wine (I used Merlot)
3-4 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1/4 cup each fresh basil and parsley coarsely chopped

In a large saucepan, heat olive oil and add the first 4 ingredients and saute over medium heat for 8 minutes, or till vegetables are tender.

Add the wine, all the tomatoes/paste, sugar, roasted garlic, salt and pepper. Once bubbling, stir, cover and reduce heat to low. Stir occasionally and simmer for 3 hours.

About halfway through simmering, I added the fresh herbs, and added some more once plated. I served it with whole wheat penne rigate, some shredded Parmigiano-Reggiano & a romaine spinach & veggie salad and a simple red wine vinaigrette.