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Recipe Box

A sauce like no other

by Kirk Pfeiffer

Published Thursday, 04-Dec-2008 in issue 1093

The publisher of the Gay & Lesbian Times visited me for an acupuncture treatment recently, and he suggested I share a recipe for Italian gravy.

“You mean pasta sauce?” I asked. I got a quick lesson in the difference between sauce and gravy – primarily, that Old World (or old school East Coast) Italians call sauce “gravy” and that it tastes 100 times better than the sweet, jarred stuff we pour over our pasta.

I was intrigued, so I sought out a recipe for Italian gravy and was pleasantly surprised to find a number of recipes. I wandered over to Adams Avenue Book Store and found a cookbook titled, The Frugal Gourmet Cooks with Wine. The Frugal Gourmet had a cooking show out of WTTW in Chicago (where I grew up). I figured the book was going to be good – and when I made the recipe for Italian gravy from it, it blew my mind. I was in heaven. The taste is so deep and savory. I selected premium mild Italian sausages, pricked them lightly and browned them in just a touch of olive oil in a pan, added the Italian gravy and simmered covered for 20 minutes. I served it with fresh pasta and it was almost as if I’d been transported to a large Italian family table on the East Coast! I’ll have to make the recipe when I have the publisher over for dinner – maybe I can convince him to cook up his mother’s famous meatball recipe!

If you have suggestions, tips or recipes you’d like to share, contact us through www.gaylesbiantimes.com/links/1089.

Kirk Pfeiffer is a licensed acupuncturist and herbalist in private practice on University Avenue at Richmond Street in Hillcrest. For his contact information, including his Web site, visit www.gaylesbiantimes.com/links/1089.

Frugal Gourmet Italian Gravy

2 28-ounce cans tomato puree

1 6-ounce can tomato paste

1 quart chicken stock or basic brown soup stock, or use chicken bouillon

2 cups dry red wine

1/4 cup olive oil

2 yellow onions, peeled and minced

6 large garlic cloves, chopped

2 celery stocks with leaves, minced

1 carrot, grated

1/2 cup parsley, chopped

1/2 pound fresh mushrooms, chopped (optional)

1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes

1 teaspoon crushed oregano

1 teaspoon dried rosemary

2 bay leaves

1 teaspoon dried basil, or 2 teaspoons fresh basil

2 whole cloves (optional)

1/2 teaspoon black pepper, freshly ground

2 teaspoons salt, or to taste

1 teaspoon sugar

1 pound pork neck bones or chicken backs and necks

In a large pot, place the tomato puree, tomato paste, chicken or beef stock and wine. Heat a large frying pan and add the olive oil. Sauté the onions, garlic, celery and carrot until they brown a bit. Add to the pot along with the remaining ingredients. Bring to a light boil and then turn down to a simmer. Simmer for two hours, partly covered, stirring often. Remove the bones and discard. Skim the fat from the top and discard. Store in the refrigerator covered, in either glass, plastic, or stainless steel. It will keep for a week. Use for pasta topping or for any other dish calling for Italian tomato sauce or “gravy.” This freezes very well. Makes three quarts.