Homemade Marinara Sauce - © recipegirl.com

COVID-19 Lock Down Cooking Fun: Invent A Pasta Sauce!

I suspect you have been eating a lot of Pasta during your COVID-19 home-cooking adventure. If so, you must be getting tired of the same old toppings. I’ve devised a little game that gets the whole family involved and generates something new to put on your Pasta. I call it Try a New Sauce…

Pasta al Pomerola - © anonymousPasta alle Pomerola (see below for recipe link): A Classic Tuscan Pasta Sauce.

Step 1: Choose your Pasta Type

What’s your family’s favourite Pasta shape? The shapes subdivide neatly into two categories – short and long. If you usually cook up a long noodle like Spaghetti, Fettuccine, Linguine or Tagliatelle, try switching to a short style such as Penne, Rotini, Orecchietti (Shells), Rigatoni (Tubular), Farfalle (Bow Ties) or good old Macaroni Elbows.

Step 2: Choose your Sauce Type

Pasta Sauces divide themselves into just a few categories, the most popular by far being Tomato-based and Cream Style. But donh’t forget the Pesto and Butter/Oil dressings!

The Mother Sauce of the Tomato family is tried and true Marinara. From this humble base come Bolognaise (Meat Sauce), Ragù (Meat, Celery, Carrots and Onions), Puttanesca (Anchovies, Olives, Rosemary and Capers), and Sausage (Cooked Italian Sausage, Onion and Garlic). Pomarola (Garlic, Red Onion, Basil, Oregano and Sofrito) is a Red Sauce that’s ubiquitous in Tuscany.

The easiest (and most popular) of the Cream-style Sauces is Alfredo. A crossover favourite is Tomato Cream Sauce. Everybody loves Roasted Garlic. For a spicy Cream Sauce, go to Albufera. For those who prefer less or no Garlic and Spice, try a classic Suprème Sauce (Add sliced, sautéed Mushrooms for Creamy Mushroom Sauce). Carbonara is another classic that takes just a few ingredients (Garlic, Bacon Bits, Cream, and Parmesan or Romano Cheese).

Non-Tomato, non-Cream (Butter/Oil) Sauces include: Pesto (Basil, Garlic, Pine Nuts and Parmesan Cheese) is the classic green Pasta Sauce and it’s also a go-everywhere accompaniment for almost any Italian dish. Classic Garlic Sauce (Olive Oil, Garlic, Black Pepper and Grated Cheese) is made right in the pan with the cooked Pasta in about 5 minutes. Clam, or alle Vongole Sauce (Garlic, Red Pepper Flakes, White Wine, Small Clams) is another ancient and beloved Pasta dressing. One relative newcomer worthy of mention here is Balsamic Mushroom Sauce (Shallots, Garlic, Mushrooms, Balsamic Vinegar and Cream).

Or invent your own Pasta Sauce!

Get ideas from your family about the foods they love with their Pasta and incorporate the best suggestions into the basic Marinara Cream, or Butter/Oil Sauce. You might just come up with a signature Sauce you can use thereafter to please family and wow friends!

Step 3: Make sure to get everybody into the act…

Many Italian families have a tradition that everyone coming to dinner must stir the Red (Tomato-based) Sauce, for good luck. Try starting other Pasta Sauce-related traditions with your family to make trying or inventing a new Sauce something extra-special. Who’s ‘job’ is it to press the Garlic? Dice the Onions? Chop the Basil? Grate the Cheese?

~ Maggie J.