This is an excellent veggie-version
of a "simmer-all-day" spaghetti meat sauce. The vegetables
are finely minced and as they cook, take on the appearance and
texture of cooked ground meat in the sauce. Use of a food processor
to prepare the vegetables is a big help, but not necessary. Don't
let the long list of ingredients scare you away, this is delicious
and well worth the effort.
Veggie Spaghetti
Sauce
Start this sauce early
in the day, allowing at least 5 to 6 hours slow-simmer cooking time.
2 teaspoons dried basil
leaves
1 teaspoon dried oregano
leaves
1 teaspoon anise or fennel
seeds, crushed
2 large bay leaves
2 tablespoon extra virgin
olive oil
2 large onions, finely
minced
2 large carrots, pared
and finely minced
8 cloves garlic, finely
minced
2 (6-ounce) cans tomato
paste
1 large red or green bell
pepper, finely minced
2 large celery ribs, finely
chopped
6 small zucchini, finely
minced
1 (28-ounce) can crushed
Roma tomatoes, undrained
3 cups water
1 tablespoon Worcestershire
sauce
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 tablespoon dried parsley
2 teaspoons kosher or
coarse salt, or to taste
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground
pepper, or to taste
12 ounces fresh mushrooms,
sliced*
Premium Spaghetti pasta,
cooked al dente according to package directions
Freshly grated Parmesan
cheese for sprinkling (optional)
In small bowl combine
the basil leaves, oregano leaves, anise or fennel seeds and bay
leaf; set aside.
Prepare the garlic, onion,
carrot, bell pepper, celery and zucchini; Set aside. (If you have a food processor, using
it will speed things up
and be easier. Be careful not to over-process.)
In a large cooking pot,
heat the olive oil over medium heat and add onions. Cook onions
until they begin to soften, then reduce heat to a low simmer
and cook for at least 2 hours, stirring occasionally, to caramelize
the onions. This is one of the most important elements
of this sauce, it's the source
of its rich flavor. Caramelizing onions correctly requires patience,
rushing it produces an inferior bitter taste. After 1 hour cooking
time, add the carrots and caramelize
them together with the onions.
Add the garlic
and cook over medium heat
for one minute, stirring constantly, then add the reserved spice mixture, cooking and stirring
for 30 seconds.
Add the tomato paste and
cook about 2 minutes while stirring constantly. Add the remaining prepared vegetables
and continue to cook
an additional 2 to 3 minutes.
Add the crushed tomatoes,
water, Worcestershire sauce,
soy sauce, salt, pepper and the parsley leaves. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and
simmer for at least 3 to 4 hours.
Add the sliced mushrooms
to the sauce about 10 minutes before the end of the cooking time, or if you prefer your
mushrooms cooked limp, add during the last 2 hours cooking time.
To serve, ladle the sauce
over hot cooked pasta and top with a sprinkling with the Parmesan cheese, if desired.
Serves 6 to 8.
*Or use canned mushrooms.
Nutrition Facts (per serving:
1/6 serving of sauce and pasta): 507.2 calories; 12% calories
from fat; 7.2g total fat; 0.0mg cholesterol; 1448.7mg sodium;
2120.5mg potassium; 97.7g carbohydrates; 12.6g fiber; 17.4g sugar;
85.1g net carbs; 20.1g protein.
