Makin' It Saucy!

Today being Valentines Day, I wanted to make my husband a special dish that incorporated what this blog is about. Pasta was on my mind. A tomato based sauce has been on my mind as of late. So perusing the internet I decided a Vodka Sauce would be my target. Finding a decent recipe on allrecipes.com
I decided to kick it up to my level. The basic recipe is as follows:

1/2 cup butter
1 onion, diced
1 cup vodka
2 (28 ounce) cans crushed tomatoes
1 pint heavy cream

In a skillet over medium heat, saute onion in butter until slightly brown and soft. Pour in vodka and let cook for 10 minutes. Mix in crushed tomatoes and cook for 30 minutes. Pour in heavy cream and cook for another 30 minutes.

But I did it a little differently. Choosing olive oil over butter and adding yellow squash and zucchini(which I decided is one of my least favorite words to spell)and a few pieces of yellow bell pepper while the onion/crushed tomatos/vodka simmered. With a touch of some fresh cilantro, dried italian seasoning, black pepper and 2 tablespoons of sugar to break down the acidity of the tomatos.

The smell in the house is amazing, my husband said it smelled great. I'll go ahead and admit this now- I LOVE to taste test my food as it cooks. I dipped my spoon in before the heavy cream was added and it was delish. I went in for a dip or two after the cream and it is rich. Serving the sauce over angel hair style pasta, with some crescent rolls. Sounds sexy to me on Valentines Day!

By the way, it makes a TON of sauce I'm sure will freeze well or work for leftovers....I do have some of the meatballs left that I made on Thursday.