El Tallarin Muy Bueno [English Translation: The Spaghetti Very Good]

Erm. I never said the translation was going to make sense. Oh well.

But, I do assure you. The spaghetti is indeed, very good. So good. Make you close your eyes and curl your toes good. Think you’ve died and gone to spaghetti heaven good. Am I getting my point across yet? Or shall I pull the spaghetti ratio to goodness ratio bar graph out. Because I will. Oh, I will.

I’m just joshin’ yah. I would never think to subject you to such tragedy. Why look at weird, abstract, color-coded bars and obtuse lines on stark cardboard paper when you can indulge your senses with things much more scintillating.

Do I have your attention now?

This spaghetti is the pinnacle of all things heavenly.

The secret to this dish is the homemade marinara sauce. I never knew how good pasta could taste until I decided to whip up my own. And now, I will never, ever buy a jar of Prego again. It’s THAT good!

Turns out, the marinara sauce was a pinch to make and can easily be done on a week night. You prep the veggies, toss them into a pot, and let them get happy for an hour. In the time that you’ve devoured two snicker doodles, ogled over this weeks’ issue of People magazine (ladies, check it out), and went cross-eyed trying to figure out what in the bloody sausage that stain is on the ceiling, and more importantly, how did it get there, you’ve managed to make a mighty fine marinara sauce that will stick to your ribs (in a good way) and make you feel all pretty and resourceful-like.

Wanna give it a go?

Thought you’d never ask.

Spaghetti with Marinara & Spicy Chorizo

Serves 8-10

For the marinara sauce:

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 1 hour and 10 minutes

Difficulty: Easy

Ingredients

1/2 C. extra-virgin olive oil

1 medium yellow onion; finely chopped

2 garlic cloves; finely chopped

2 stalks celery with leaves; finely chopped

2 carrots; peeled, and finely chopped

1/2 t. salt

1/2 t. black pepper

2 – 28 oz. cans crushed tomatoes (get the San Marzano variety if possible — they taste the best)

2 bay leaves

In large pot over medium high heat, drizzle in the olive oil. Add the onions, celery, carrots, garlic, salt, and pepper. Saute until the vegetables have softened, about 8-10 minutes. Add the tomatoes and bay leaves and let everything simmer, uncovered, until the sauce thickens; about an hour. Remove and discard the bay leaves. Season to taste with additional salt and pepper if necessary. Extra sauce can be refrigerated or frozen for future use.

For the spaghetti:

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Cook Time: 20 minutes

Difficulty: Easy

Ingredients

1 lb. chorizo sausage

1 lb. ground chuck

1 small yellow onion; chopped roughly

2 garlic cloves; minced

Salt and pepper

Cayenne pepper; a pinch

1/4 teaspoon cumin

4 C. marinara sauce

1/2 C. heavy cream

Red pepper flakes, to taste

1 – 1 lb. box of thin spaghetti noodles 

Freshly grated Parmesan cheese

In a large pot, boil water for pasta noodles. Once the water has come to a boil, add a handful of salt, then dump the pasta noodles in, stirring and easing the noodles in. Cook until al dente; about 10 minutes. Drain.

Set a large pot or dutch oven to medium-high heat. Using the tip of your knife, slice the casings off the chorizo sausages by running the knife along the length of it, exposing the chorizo meat inside. Extract the meat and toss into the pot. Discard the casings. Repeat with the rest of the sausages. With a wooden spoon, break the chorizo sausage into small bite-size pieces. Once they have cooked, scoop the chorizo into a bowl and set aside. Keep the chorizo drippings in the pot and add the ground chuck to cook in it. Use the wooden spoon to break the ground chuck into small bite-size pieces as well. Season with salt, pepper, cayenne pepper, and cumin. Stir. Once the ground chuck has cooked, tumble it into the same bowl with the chorizo sausage. Set aside. In the same pot, toss the onions and garlic to cook until the onions are translucent. When this happens, toss the chorizo sausage and ground chuck back into the pot to mix in with the onions and garlic. Lower the heat to medium-low. Add the marinara sauce, heavy cream, and red pepper flakes. Stir. Taste for seasonings.

Add the thin spaghetti noodles into the sauce and meat medley. Combine everything together. Have a taste. Smile, bella.

Serve this sexy beast on a big plate with soft tendrils of freshly grated Parmesan cheese.

Provecho!

XO,

Steph