I have a feeling that the recipe I’m sharing today probably has a very fancy Italian name.  I have no idea what that might be, however, as in our house it is simply known as ‘that red stuff’.  It was first given to me many years ago, by a student on one of my courses.  It is simple and fast, and can be made from the store cupboard in an emergency.  I’ve altered it slightly over the years, but it is still very quick to prepare.

Firstly, slice an onion very thinly.  Pop it into a pan with a  little olive oil and set it on a low heat.  Let the onion cook gently until it starts to colour, then add a clove (or two) of garlic (you can leave this out if you don’t like it.  Skin and chop some fresh tomatoes or us a can of tomatoes, it will alter the flavour slightly, but still be good.  Now, here’s the trick, and really does make a difference.  Before you add the tomatoes to the pan pour in a good slurp of Marsala. Now turn the heat up and ‘bubble off’ the alcohol.   Add the chopped tomatoes, mix well and season with salt, black pepper, oregano and basil to taste.  Serve with spaghetti or pasta, and as that takes about the same length of time to cook as the sauce you can see it’s a really quick meal.

Serve with shavings of cheese and a delicious green salad.  As I have a weakness for green salad I never forget that part of the menu.  The original recipe didn’t have garlic or herbs, but I prefer it with these additions, especially if the herbs are freshly picked.

Enjoy