Crocktober: Marinara Sauce from the Crock Pot

Even though this is only the second recipe of Crocktober, I'm gonna go ahead and declare this the absolute easiest crock pot recipe on the planet. Okay, there is that extra thing where you have to boil pasta, but you can make a very yummy home-made sauce while you're not even at home. I think that's pretty cool.

Sometime last winter, I called my (Italian-American) Dad to brag about having made my very first meat sauce. He was mildly impressed, but I was super impressed, because to me pasta sauce is a basic necessity vital for the survival of the human race. Perhaps this is a slight exaggeration, but I defy you to find a person who does not, or has never enjoyed spaghetti in a red sauce. You can't. They don't exist.

I used fresh parsley and basil with dried oregano, but you could use all dried herbs or all fresh. With the fresh herbs, add them just before serving. Subject them to all-day cooking and they will lose their oomph, and possibly disintegrate. Also, if you're anything like me, it might seem like a good idea to chop the herbs ahead of time so you can just toss them in the crock when you get home, but resist the urge. The flavor will be much more fresh if you wait, and premature chopping generally leads to browned leaves, which is just sad.

This recipe makes about 3-4 servings. (I'm a hungry person, generally, so I never know for sure what other people consider a serving to be).

Ingredients:

1 1-lb., 12 oz. can crushed tomatoes

1 6 oz. can tomato paste

1/2 cup fresh basil leaves (lightly packed), chopped

1/2 cup fresh parsley leaves (lightly packed), chopped

1 tsp dried Italian herbs (using the fresh ones above, this is optional but recommended)

1/2 cup vegetable broth or stock

1 tsp salt

1/4 tsp ground black pepper

2 cloves garlic, smashed 

1 cup onion, diced

Grated Parmesan or Pecorino Romano cheese for serving (optional)

Directions:

1. Combine all ingredients except for the fresh herbs and cheese in a 2-5 qt crock pot. Cover and cook on low 8-10 hours or high for 4-6 hours.

2. Add the fresh basil and parsley.

3. Serve (generously) over fresh, hot pasta (avoiding the garlic) and sprinkle with Parmesan or grated Pecorino Romano cheese.

4. Gleefully slurp your spaghetti.

My lens got a little steamy there on the left

This recipe is a good base for an arrabbiata sauce. Just add red pepper flakes, cayenne pepper, a whole dried chile, Sriracha or whatever you like to use to heat things up. 

While I don't know the "rules" of marinara, I do know that you could add celery, carrots, or mushrooms to this sauce if you felt compelled. Celery and carrots are hearty enough to withstand all-day cooking, so it's one-step and you'll get lots of delicious flavor mingling. (Mushrooms are a little more delicate and should probably only cook about half that long). The only rule I do know is that since marinara is relatively thin in texture (compared to, say, a lamb ragu) it should be enjoyed with spaghetti, so save the tube-and-trumped-shaped pasta for the trapping of thick sauce, meat and veggies.

 P.s. If you're in a pinch and don't have the time to make your sauce, Bon Appetit recently did a blind taste test of store-bought tomato sauces, and Barilla Traditional Marinara came out on top.

Crocktober is Here!

Ciao readers! Sadly I don't have plans to share a recipe for today, but I would like to announce that it is officially Crocktober in the Guerilla Kitchen. Naturally I didn't decide this before yesterday's crock-potted stuffed acorn squash story went up, but now it's for real. Look forward to all-crock-pot-all-the-time posts from GK this month. Soups, stew, spiced cider, hot cereal and more stuffed squash are on the way, but I can appreciate a challenge and welcome any recommendations!

Crocktober: Acorn Squash Stuffed With Walnuts & Dried Fruit

Happy October, everybody! Welcome to my most favorite month. (December is more fun, but I look forward to Autumn weather all year round).

My Great Aunt Lois lived in upstate New York. As a kid that seemed like light years away from Cape Cod, but fortunately we saw her at least every 4th of July at my grandparents' house, about an hour from where my sister and I grew up. We didn't get to New York to visit her very often - only a couple of times that I can clearly recall - but I remember a few things about those visits quite well. For one, she was as sweet-yet-sassy a person as you could ever hope to meet, and she made a stuffed acorn squash that tasted practically like candy, stuffed with nuts, raisins and brown sugar. As a kid, they were the best-case-scenario of vegetables, and pretty fun to eat besides.

My Aunt Lois passed away about two and a half years ago, and while my Mother tells me that there is a written recipe for her acorn squash around, she told me that about ten minutes before I took mine out of the crock pot. Anyway, I'm certain that I didn't make these quite the way she would have. Still, I like to think she would be happy that I tried. For one thing, I'm sure hers were baked instead of cooked in a crock pot, but I'm still pretty sure that just about anything can be cooked in a crock pot. Sure and also fairly determined, to be fair. So bust out the crock pot already, it's Fall.

I cooked one acorn squash in my 2 quart crock pot. In a bigger machine you could do two or three at a time. You'll want to be sure that your squash stays upright, so you probably wouldn't want to do one little squash in a big 5-quarter or anything, though you could probably do it "open-faced," so to speak. The good news (for people with a big slow cooker but maybe not a lot of people to feed that day) is that this stuffing would also be super yummy in a butternut squash.

For an extra flavor boost, toast the walnuts first. Toasted walnuts are a great thing to have on hand for fall and winter recipes, anyway, so you might as well toast a bunch at once. I found out a bit late (ahem, MOM) that hers also had diced apple in there, which sounds fantastic and I will definitely do next time.

Since I made this for myself as a main dish, I added about 1 tablespoon of ground flax to the stuffing for extra protein, but this is totally optional. A little bulgur wheat, pearl barley, or soft whole-wheat breadcrumbs would also lend it more substance - just keep in mind that bulgur and barley will both expand significantly once cooked!

Ingredients:

1 acorn squash

2 tablespoons butter, softened

2 tablespoon brown sugar (I used dark brown, but I'm sure light is fine too)

1/2 cup chopped walnuts or pecans (I used walnuts)

1/3 cup raisins, dried cranberries, cherries, chopped apricots, or a combination (I used mostly raisins with a Trader Joe's mix of some dried cranberries and dried pomegranate seeds)

Apple juice or cider, about a cup and a half (I used 100% juice)

1 tsp cinnamon (I also sprinkled a little on while I was eating it...)

1/4 tsp nutmeg

1/4 tsp allspice

1/4 tsp salt

1/4 tsp ground black pepper

Directions:

1. Cut the lid off the squash, starting about an inch below the crown (the widest part, near the top) and save the lid. Scoop out the seeds and stringy guts. (The skins can be super tough. If yours is resistant, microwave the squash for a couple of minutes before cutting into it. And if you start the cut a little too high on the squash like I did, you might have to cut away a little of the flesh to get to the chamber). Cut the point off of the bottom so that it will stand up; just enough to create a flat spot.

2. In a mixing bowl, combine spices, butter and sugar, then add in nuts, fruit and a teaspoon or two of the cider or juice and spoon the mixture into the squash, packing slightly. Rest the lid on top. (Don't worry if you have a little extra stuffing. Put it in your oatmeal tomorrow. Voila!)

3. Spray the inside of the crock insert with nonstick cooking spray. Place squash inside, and pour in about a cup of juice or cider around (not in) the squash.

4. Cover and cook on low for 5-7 hours or on high for 2-3 hours. When the flesh is fork-tender, carefully remove the squash and serve. (Mine was perfect after 6 hours on low).

This is so, SO good. I can say that because it wasn't my idea. SO delicious. Definitely sweet though - you've got to be in the mood for it. But it's so tasty, so seasonal, and so freakin' adorable in its little acorn-shaped package. And obviously, you can cut back on the sugar and make up for it with spice.

There are probably a zillion different ways you could go with this idea, if you weren't so into the sugar-and-spice route. Rice with a little sage would also be a great base for a stuffing, or browned ground turkey, and with a little goat cheese sprinkled on top... Yum. So many possibilities. Why do I suspect that I'll be eating a lot of squash this year?

Quote of the Day: "Autumn is a second spring where every leaf is a flower." ~ Albert Camus