Pasta Sauce

Although pasta is thought to be traditionally Italian, its origin is unclear. In fact, pasta is
probably the descendant of ancient Asian noodles. It is believed that Marco Polo brought the dish
to Italy from China. Pasta was likely created thousands of years ago in central Asia. Marco Polo
isnt given all the credit, though. Some archaeologists believe nomadic Arabs brought early
forms of pasta east to the Mediterranean. However, the word itself is Italian, meaning paste.
This refers to the fact that pasta is made up of a mixture of flour and water or flour and eggs. The
word is applied to traditional Italian noodles made from ground durum wheat. The dish became
firmly rooted in Italian culture, and the herbs that grew in the Mediterranean were great for
topping the pasta (Avey). However, tomatoes were not mentioned as being a topping to pasta
until about the early 1800s. They were recommended by a French man, Alexandre Balthazar
Laurent Grimod de La Reyneire, to be a useful substitute for purees and cheeses in the fall. He
defended his statement by saying that the juice gave an agreeable acidity (Gentilcore 89).
Tomatoes emerged as a favorite component to the dish, and are still the main ingredient in most
pasta sauces. Pasta remains a popular symbol of Italian culture today.
In my family, the sauce is equally, if not more important than the pasta. The recipe is handed
down from my great grandmother, and is altered with each generation. She came from the South
of Italy, San Felice Circeo, which was a small and poor beach town in 1915.She crossed over to
America when she was fourteen years old with her uncle and half-brother, and didnt speak any
English. My great grandfather came from Carpeneto, in northern Italy, earlier on and settled in
Iselin Pennsylvania to become a coal miner. They met and married when she was sixteen. My
grandfather, Richard, was born as their second oldest child in 1918.He raised his family in
Mamaroneck New York, but most of his siblings lived in Rome, New York. My father spent

much of his childhood visiting his family, and two of his cousins were his best friends. When my
father started to make his version of the pasta sauce, it had already been altered to fit the
difference in food between Southern Italy and Northern United States. Later on, when my sister
became a vegan, my father came up with a vegan version of the sauce that tasted just as delicious
(DArcangelo). My family pasta sauce will hopefully continue to be passed down and altered
throughout the generations.
1 Medium Yellow Onion Minced
6 Cloves of Garlic Smashed
4 Cloves of Garlic Sliced thin
2 Teaspoon Sugar
1 Pinch of Salt
1 Teaspoons Fresh Ground Black Pepper
2 Teaspoons Basil
Extra Virgin Olive Oil
2 29 Oz Cans of Hunts Tomato Sauce
2 28 Oz Cans of Red Pack Tomato Paste
Cup Italian Style Bread Crumbs
Cup Grated Parmesan Cheese
2 Large Eggs
1 LB Hot Italian Sausage
1 LB Sweet Italian Sausage
2 LB Lean Ground Beef
Take a 5 QT sauce pot and coat the bottom with olive oil heat on low.
Add minced onion and crushed garlic. Cover the pot.
Once the garlic and onion are translucent add the tomato paste and tomato sauce.
Stir in sugar, salt, black pepper, and basil.
Pierce the sausage with a fork and cut into one inch lengths.
In a large bowl combine the ground Beef, bread crumbs, eggs and parmesan cheese, using two
hands to knead it together. Once these ingredients are toughly mixed form meatballs to any size
you like. We prefer small.
In a Coat 2 large skillets with olive oil and add the sliced garlic in equal amounts, heat to a low
to medium temp then add the sausage to one of the skillets and the meatballs to the other. Brown
both the sausage and meatballs, remove from the skillets, draining the oil and place them into the
sauce., cover and bring to a high temperature stirring frequently. Once it bubbles cut back the
heat to the lowest possible setting. Slow cook for three hours. ( The longer the better ) Stir
periodically.
Serve with your favorite Pasta or use in a lasagna.

Buon Appetito !!

Sources
Avey, Tori. "Uncover The History of Pasta." PBS. PBS, 26 July 2012. Web. 22 Apr. 2015.
"Family Pasta Sauce." Personal interview. 22 Apr. 2015.
Gentilcore, David. Pomodoro:A History of the Tomato in Italy. New York: Columbia UP, 2010. 89-90.
Print.