Marinara Sauce

You can serve Marinara Sauce separately or toss it with the pasta before bringing it to the table. Serve pasta along with a tossed salad, garlic bread, cooked meatballs, or Italian sausage, and have lots of freshly ground Parmesan-Reggiano cheese and a pepper grinder available.

Yield: Sauce for 2 pounds of pasta

Ingredients:

• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 2 medium onions, peeled and diced
• 4 cloves of garlic, peeled and minced
• 1 ½ teaspoons dried oregano
• ⅛ teaspoon red pepper flakes
• 1 (6-ounce) can tomato paste
• 1 cup dry red wine
• 4 (28-ounce) cans crushed tomatoes with basil
• ½ cup (1 ounce) freshly grated Parmesan-Reggiano cheese
• Optional: ¼ cup fresh basil, minced
• Sea salt, to taste
• 1 ½ teaspoons sugar

1. Add the oil and onions to the slow cooker. Cover and, stirring occasionally, cook on high for 30–45 minutes or until onions are golden brown. Stir in the garlic, oregano, red pepper flakes, and tomato paste. Cover and cook on high for 15 minutes.
2. Stir in the wine and undrained tomatoes. Cover and cook on low for 4 hours or until sauce is no longer watery. Stir in the cheese, additional basil if using, salt, and sugar. Taste for seasoning and adjust if necessary.