Eat Like a Roman

One of my first dinners in Italy was a simple pasta with sauce, roasted tomatoes, Parmesan and fresh basil.  Coupled with a basket of the best bread I have ever eaten and a cheap glass of house wine, which in Italy is still better than any other, it was a meal I will never forget.  Add to that the distant gurgling of the Trevi Fountain, the warm spring breeze and the unbridled romance of being in Rome and even the most practical among us would have been moved.

It seems like for every picture we take of an amazing site or work of art we take one of our meals.  I use those to recreate the unforgettable cuisine of Italy.  I cannot match the ambiance; the smells, sounds and sights of the Eternal City, but I can do my best to recreate the taste. From Bruschetta bursting with ripe tomatoes, linguine with dainty clams, pasta with fresh scampi, and Marguerite pizza bubbling with fresh mozzarella and bright green basil.

Without an Italian bone in my body the task of making my own sauce from scratch has been a challenge, and yet I have persisted.  I can grow basil now, and keep it alive inside over the winter.  I have developed a taste for all wines Italian, inexpensive and pricey. And I can cook pasta (never call it spaghetti) until it is properly el dente.  And yes, I can make a pretty tasty sauce.

So the next time you are missing Rome, light a candle, pour a good bottle of Chianti or Valpolicella and try your hand at pasta and sauce.

Fresh Tomato Sauce

12 ripe Roma or plum tomatoes

1 large green pepper, chopped

1 large onion, chopped

3 cloves of garlic

Salt and pepper to taste

1 can tomato paste (optional)

3 – 4 tbsp of honey

• Peel the tomatoes by slicing off the top and scoring down one side, and let sit in a bowl of boiling water about 5 minutes.  The peel should come off easily.
• Coarsely chop the tomatoes and add to a pot with the green peppers, onions and garlic.  Bring to a boil, then turn to low and let simmer, about 2 – 3 hours.
• Remove form heat and using an immersion hand blender reduce mixture to a consistency you like.  I prefer mine chunkier so I don’t do this for very long.  Add salt and pepper to taste.
• If you would like your sauce a little thicker add some tomato paste.  Again to a consistency you like.  Then add the honey and stir.
• Return to the low heat until ready to serve over your favourite pasta.  This will serve around 4 people.
• Feel free to add whatever else you like with your meal; roasted cherry tomatoes, shrimp or salmon or meatballs.  Sprinkle with grated Parmesan for the finishing touch.
• If you have any left overs just freeze.  If you double or triple this recipe the sauce can be canned for later use. I do this in the fall when Roma tomatoes are plentiful and cheap.

Since I religiously toss a coin into the aforementioned Trevi Fountain every time I am in Rome I have returned again and again.  My last two trips were postponed because of the pandemic which makes my desire to return that much stronger.  Until then Buon Appetito!!