Homemade Spaghetti Sauce

Submitted by: Adrienne

A friend gave me about 5 huge garden tomatoes that didn't look super appetizing for a salad, so here's a good way to get rid of a bunch of 'em fast!

Tomatoes, however many you want, whatever size (non-Romas are great because the insides are more fleshy)
Potato masher (or fork)
1 clove garlic, grated or minced
salt and pepper
flour
grated parmesan cheese
Italian seasoning or basil and oregano
Cooked ground beef, optional

Wash and cut each tomato into medium size pieces. Put into a non-greased skillet on medium heat. Let them cook down until very soft. Take potato masher and mash them up well; the mixture should be pretty watery. To thicken, add flour 1 TB at a time while whisking until it creates the desired consistency. Add garlic, salt and pepper to taste (I used quite a bit, salt especially helps bring out the great tomato taste), grated parmesan and Italian seasoning to taste as well. Add cooked ground beef. Let simmer before serving. The longer it can simmer, the better. If you aren't super pleased with the taste (it's always hard to tell with tomatoes), add a little spaghetti sauce from the fridge. This sauce is very light and FRESH and the best way to get rid of several tomatoes that are getting too ripe.

Basic Gravy or Thick Sauce Recipe

Submitted by: Adrienne

These are basic steps you can use for making any kind of gravy or sauce for an entrée. There are 4 basic ingredients that most people always have on hand: butter, flour, liquid stock or bouillon (chicken, beef or veggie), and milk (or half & half). If you’re doing a cheesy sauce, shredded cheese would be your last ingredient. This is a great recipe to use in case you run out of cream soups to cook with; it works great with casseroles.

Every sauce is begins with a “rue”, which is a thickening agent. Start by melting 2 tablespoons of butter in a saucepan on medium heat. Once it’s melted, add 2 tablespoons of flour (you always want both to be the same amount, however much you want). Whisk it together…the flour will start to clump up, but that’s okay. Let it cook for about 40-60 seconds to cook the flour taste out. Then you need to add a liquid, preferably some kind of stock or broth; you can do chicken, beef or veggie flavored. (Note: you can even use water & bouillon for your stock). Add about ½ cup to start with; you could add a little more if you want. Whisk that all together, being sure to dissolve the clumps of flour and butter completely. Then stir in about ¼ cup or so of either milk or half & half. Add any spices you’d like as you stir. The sauce will begin to thicken, and voila! If you’re doing a cheesy sauce, you can then add shredded cheese, about 1 cup or so.