Ah make Ragu that RAWKS!

Fuck yeah ah dae!

This is a recipe that my mom gave me when ah moved out here - actually she makes twice as much as this when she daes it n then freezes it. I find this makes two big batches, so ah generally make a few lunches with one of them n then freeze tha rest. Every couple months ahll make this - it makes my house smell like my rents place. Ahm gaein ta share in case anyone is interested - this is a watery ragu type of sauce, not the chunky kind that many people think of.

Ingredients
6 oz. tomato paste
28 oz cans crushed tomatoes (ah use the muir glen fire-roasted, they make a great sauce)
28 oz water
~1 teaspoon salt (could add more)
pepper grinds
parsley (at least tablespoon)
oregano (at least half tablespoon)
1 bay leaf
at least ½ tablespoon sugar
veggies
addtl spices (chili)
1 Veggie Bullion Cube

The veggies ah used this time were:
1 shredded carrot
1 Portabello mushroom cap cut into thick-ish chunks
1 Green pepper, sliced thin



Making the sauce is easy - put everything in a big pot, bring it to a boil, then reduce to a simmer, cover, and simmer for at least an hour (I do it anywhere from 1./5 - 3 hours, although I don't think thars much difference between 2 hours n 3 hours).

Ah was especially happy with tha most recent batch, which was full of flavor. Also, even tho tha sauce is somewhat watery, it has plenty of consistency because of tha big chunks of veggies. MMMMM!

WE COOK!

Yes, ah forced my house ta have dinnah togetha. N they LIKED IT! Gawta love message boards.....

Ah stepped in ta make tha main course - stuffed shells a la my mom's recipe. It might've smelled like mom's cookin, but it has a way ta gae - both in terms of texture (ragu was too watery) n taste (BLAND stuffin - even w. spinach!).

Howevah, ah feel prety proud fer takin tha first step - cookin my mom's ragu from tha get-gae. Ah can't share her recipe (nawt that it would help much) but here's a glimpse at tha ingredients used:



That was mostly fer tha ragu - which ah multi-tasked on n also made lunches fer a few days. An ol' throwback to my bawstan/nova days, some SUPAH MAC N CHEEZ. This time includin:



At one point in time ah was simmerin tha ragu:



While ah was also steamin broccoli, fryin tofu/peppers/zucchini, n boilin macaroni:



Thas rite, ah ken multi-task.

Anyway, tha shells came out passable - lookin nawt TOO shabby:



Altho a lil shabby, ahll admit it.

We had tons of food, n people came ta visit! Then tha roommates posed (Cuz it was tha first time we've evah been in tha same room togetha, nae joke).

Say cheese Roommmates!



Finally, ah was extra happy cuz ah found Gallo, a Guatemalean beer ah enjoyed greatly, sold in my favorite container - tha LITER Bottle. Out here they call it Famosa, but it tastes tha same as cheap....



Updatin ken be fun!