Brandywine Marinara Sauce

A quick stop at my favorite farm stand always provides me with the answer to the age-old question, "What's for Dinner?"  When I spied those beautiful Brandywine heirlooms; I knew what I'd be having!

I've been waiting and waiting for the tomatoes to appear.  It's so funny because every time I go Kathy beats me to the punch and says, "They are not ready yet, and I can't control the weather."  Hey it doesn't hurt to ask again.

I made a larger batch of sauce so I can make two meals out of it, just an easy way to get ahead in the kitchen especially when you know your time will be short.  I used half of the Marinara sauce on top of some three cheese raviolis and the rest on a pork braciole.  I will share both of those recipes with you shortly.

Brandywine Marinara Sauce

5 lbs. Brandywine tomatoes

2 tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil

1 large yellow onion, chopped, finely (note the beautiful specimens I found at the market)

2 carrots, grated

2 stalks celery, chopped finely

3 cloves garlic, minced

6 ounces tomato paste

2 tsp. kosher salt

1 tsp. freshly ground black pepper

2-3 tbsp. fresh basil, chopped

First you need to get the skin off the tomatoes. I cut mine in half and lay them on a cookie sheet that is lined with parchment or a silpat for easy removal and even easier clean up.  Place them in a 400 degree oven for 10 -12 minutes, cool for a few minutes and slip the skins off.  Squeeze them over a strainer and get the seeds out.  Make sure and reserve all the juices.  I crush the tomatoes up with my hands.

Heat a large stockpot on medium-low and add olive oil.  Add chopped onions, carrots and celery to pan and cook for 15-20 minutes, till cooked down and soft, if they are getting brown, turn down heat.  Add garlic and tomato paste and cook for 2-3 minutes longer.

Add crushed tomatoes and juices, salt and pepper.  Lower heat to simmer and cook for 30-40 minutes.  Add the chopped basil after sauce is finished if you want the freshest flavor.  I added a tablespoon or so of sugar because my sauce was a little acidic.

Enjoy,

Gina

Tiramisu and Cindy's 35th Birthday Party!

Happy 35th Birthday Cindy!  I think this story should begin with me embarrassing my baby sister, after all what are sisters for!  I couldn't have been happier to throw a birthday party for my sister.  She is 7 1/2 years younger than me; I'm being technical because, I don't need to add anymore years than I already have.   I had the privilege of taking care of her when we were growing up, including making her play dress up; she was the doll.  We shared a room until I got married and moved out, she enjoyed tormenting me and my now husband thoroughly, she was the quintessential third wheel.  She has been a great Auntie to my girls and now she is a great friend to me, she's been my hospital sitting partner for my mom and everything else you can imagine!  I just wanted her to know, it was my pleasure to celebrate yet another year in her life!

I tried to keep some stuff a surprise, but she wanted in on the planning action, including making sure this was a grown-up foodie party, complete with cool foodie ingredients to go in the goodie bags.   We always celebrate all the kids' birthdays in grand style, but us adults are always an afterthought; we decided to change that.   

I filled up all the bags; including spice mixes I made for the ladies, besides what's a party without champagne and chocolate!  I had to set us a grown up table, hot pink, black and silver were our colors, so I had to add a little bling here and there!

The doorbell rang and our guests started piling in.  Louise, Denise, Cindy, Andrea, Debra, Alisha, and Marion.  I told them to give me their hot girl pose; I think they did a smashing job!  They all work together, and from the stories they told me, have way too much fun during the day.  I'm trying to get a job over there so I can be their official potluck party planner!

Shelly and Stephanie got here, Shelly is like another sister, a lifelong friend and someone I can always count on.  Our kids have grown up together.  

We had people, now for the food; well I didn't want them to go home hungry or anything!  We picked recipes from the blog so they could taste some of the things they have been drooling over, or maybe they just wanted to find out if I was full of "crapulous"!

Menu

Appetizers:  Stuffed Baby Portabella Mushrooms with Sausage, Sage, Thyme and Parmesan Cheese,

Hot Artichoke and Spinach Dip, Garlic Olives, Sopressata,  Rosemary Parmesan Icebox Crackers

Salad:  Mixed Baby Greens with White Balsamic Vinaigrette and Herbed Croutons

Main:  Lasagna with Grandma's Tomato Sauce and Roasted Asparagus (I even pulled out some jars of my San Marzanos from the summer for my special company!)

Desserts:  Tiramisu and Dark Chocolate Cupcakes with Raspberry Buttercream (These were so good, you just might have to wait for my cookbook for this recipe!)

Drinks:  Sangria and Iced Tea (I used my Nectarine and Blackberry recipe, there are no fresh nectarines this time of year, so I used frozen peaches instead, good choice I might add.)

While we were waiting for the main course, we had a little fun with the ladies and played food games, foodie trivia and chopped, complete with lovely prizes!  Here was our favorite question; "What is a crapulous person full of"?  You should of heard some of the answers.

I guess we had tortured them enough, so we sat back down in the dining room for some cupcakes, tiramisu and present opening.

After many hours of stuffing ourselves and laughing, the guests were sent off with foodie gift bags.  If you noticed the Sugar Cookie Heart Pops on the right, simply make the cookies per the recipe and insert a stick prior to baking and cover with a cellophane bag afterwards.  

Hopefully the ladies have all recovered from their food hangovers.  Thank you everyone for helping make my sister's birthday so special, I had such a great time and it was my pleasure to meet all of you.  A special Thank you Alisha for my edible Nasturtiums and Marion for the beautiful flowers.  So whose birthday is next so we can have another party?

Gina