Rustic Tomato Stew

NOTES from THE TABLE

It’s December. It’s a month of treats and parties and eating every imaginable thing, usually all in one sitting. The holidays are wonderful, and complicated, and generally, over-stuffed in every way for many of us. This recipe came straight from our house; it’s simple, inexpensive, uncomplicated, and good for you. We made this up several years ago in the dead of winter and return to it often. I’ve passed it on too many times to count.

You may not think you are a tomato person, but perhaps you just haven’t met the right recipe yet. Try out this stew on your own, then try it with a crowd. I’ll give you the proportions to make soup for one (this is a wonderful alternative to canned soups if you’re looking for a quick lunch option). But just increase the cans of tomatoes to match the number of people you’re serving, and amend the other ingredients to taste to serve a group. This multiplies easily; you can’t mess it up. Also, your house will smell amazing.

Have friends bring a green salad with a tangy vinaigrette, some crusty bread, good parmesan cheese, some wine, and something sweet, and you’re all set for a cozy winter night.

Crowd your tables,

Megan

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RUSTIC TOMATO STEW

Serves One

NOTE: California Olive Ranch makes a great everyday EVOO. And getting no salt added diced tomatoes truly is a game changer. Muir Glen’s Organic No Salt Added Diced Tomatoes really are excellent for this soup, but you might love another brand. The point? No Salt Added— you won’t regret it! They’ll warm up to a nice and sweet, savory soup, and taste like tomatoes should.

1/2 T Extra Virgin Olive Oil

Dash Maldon Sea Salt Flakes

1/4 t Red Pepper Flakes

2 Garlic Cloves, minced

(1) 14.5 oz can Muir Glen Organic No Salt Added Diced Tomatoes

Basil to taste, fresh or dried

1. Add EVOO, garlic, salt, and pepper flakes to a cold skillet. Set the burner to medium high heat and stir constantly as it warms. This allows you to heat the garlic slowly, to avoid scorching. Stir until the garlic is simmering, fragrant, and deepens to a nice golden color, about 2 minutes.

2. Add tomatoes and basil. Bring to a simmer, stirring often, until the tomatoes cook down a bit and start to thicken, about 5 minutes, or as long as it takes to look broken down and just right for you.

3. Transfer to a bowl and garnish with Parmesan if desired.

Pork Ragu

NOTES from THE TABLE

We all need a recipe like this one in our back pocket: weeknight easy, dinner party perfect, leftovers for days.

Jenny Rosenstrach’s recipe for Pork Shoulder Ragu follows through with all its promises. It’s simple to prepare, makes your house smell amazing, and brings a classic list of ingredients together in an unexpected way.

Serve this with a good salad (perhaps with a vinaigrette with a sweet zing), a hearty wide pasta like pappardelle or egg noodles, and lots of good shaved parmesan or pecorino romano on top (spring for the good stuff).

The leftovers are amazing, and you can shake them up by eating this the second night on good rolls instead of pasta.

Crowd your tables,

Megan

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PORK RAGU

This recipe was created by Jenny Rosenstrach for her blog, Dinner, a Love Story, and is also published in her cookbook of the same name. Here is the recipe straight from Jenny’s blog, in her husband Andy’s own words:

Originally published at Dinner, a Love Story. Find the full, excellent cookbook here.

Because this is pork, it goes well with a salad that has a little sweetness to help cut the porkiness. (That’s Jenny’s word.) Greens with pear, blue cheese, and pine nuts? Greens with pistachios and pomegranates? Either would be good with our standard vinaigrette.

Also, this serves about six normal-size people. If you are cooking for more than that, cook another pound of pasta, up the meat to 3 pounds, and add few more tomatoes, and another 1/2 cup of red wine. Like the other braised pork recipe we ran recently, it’s nearly impossible to get wrong, so don’t get too hung up on the exactness of measurements. But if you use 3 pounds of pork and keep the liquid at a third of the way up the meat, that will be enough to feed four parents and four kids. With leftovers. A few of you have reported back that it benefits from an extra splash or two of diced tomatoes at the end to loosen it up. I have done this many times.

2 to 2 1/2-pound boneless pork shoulder roast

1 small onion, chopped

1 garlic clove, minced

salt and pepper

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 small pat butter

1 large can whole tomatoes, with juice

1 cup red wine

5 sprigs fresh thyme

5 sprigs fresh oregano

Small handful of fennel seeds

1 tablespoon hot sauce, for smokiness (I used Trader Joe’s Hot Chili Sauce)

Pappardelle

Freshly grated Parmesean

Preheat oven to 325°F. Liberally salt and pepper the pork roast. Add olive oil and butter to large Dutch oven and heat over medium-high until butter melts, but does not burn. Add pork roast to pan and brown on all sides, about 8-10 minutes in all.

Add the onion and garlic and saute for 1 minute. Add tomatoes, wine, thyme, oregano, fennel, and hot sauce and bring to a boil. Cover, and put in oven. Braise for 3-4 hours, turning every hour or so. Add more liquid (water, wine, or tomato sauce) if needed. (The liquid should come to about 1/3 of the way up the pork.) Meat is done when it’s practically falling apart. Put on a cutting board and pull it apart with two forks, then add back to pot and stir. Cook 1 to 2 pounds pasta according to package directions. When it’s is ready, put into individual bowls and top with ragu and lots of Parm.