Best Homemade Homegrown Marinara Sauce and Easy Chicken Parmigiana (Parmesan)

Tomatoes, Tomatoes….what a blessing to have so many tomatoes. I planted a variety of heirloom seeds and I have the BEST crop of tomatoes I have every experienced. Yesterday I tried making a batch of Marinara sauce with my Italian style Marinara heirloom tomatoes. The result was the BEST tasting sauce ever! Thanks to my Italian cooking classes in Florence during my college years…I think I was able to recreate a sauce like the one I learned to make in the kitchen of the Villa Salviatino.

Marinara Sauce Ingredients
4 pounds ripe tomatoes
1 Tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
5 cloves of garlic mashed
1 medium bunch basil
1-2 sprigs thyme
1 Tablespoon fresh oregano
2 Tablespoons sugar
½ teaspoon sea salt
1-2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
½ teaspoon red pepper flakes
½ teaspoon balsamic vinegar

Cut up all the tomatoes into small pieces. Set aside. Heat the oil in a heavy pot that has a well insulated bottom so as to prevent the sauce from sticking and burning as it simmers and thickens. Add the garlic to the pot and sauté on medium low until cooked, stirring constantly so it does not brown. Add the tomatoes and all the juice to the pot. Place the bunches of herbs into the pot. Do not worry about the stems. You can pull the stems out after the sauce has simmered and thickened. I pulled half of the basil leaves off the stems because I like blending them into the sauce. Raise heat and bring to a simmer. Turn to low and cover for 30 minutes. Uncover and add the salt, pepper, sugar, red pepper flakes and balsamic vinegar. Stir and return to a low simmer and cook for another 30-60 minutes, stirring often. Remove herb stems from sauce. Let sauce cool for an hour or so. Blend in a Vitamix or use an emersion blender. I only blended half of the chunks because I like chunky Marinara sauce. How much of the sauce you blend is up to you. Serve over pasta or try this Chicken Parmigiana recipe….

Chicken Parmigiana Recipe Ingredients
3-4 chicken breasts (boneless and skinless)
1-2 teaspoons Baron’s chicken seasoning (a mix of salt and pepper and spices for baked chicken)
½ cup grated mozzarella
½ cup grated parmesan
2 cups marinara sauce
basil

Season your chicken breasts and place on a piece of foil in a glass 9×13 pan. Bake in 350 degree oven for 20 minutes, until baked through but not dry. Remove from oven and drain off the liquid.
Pour 2 cups of sauce over the chicken and sprinkle with mozzarella and parmesan cheeses. Bake another 10 minutes. Turn on oven broiler and broil for 3-5 minutes watching carefully until cheese begins to brown. Sprinkle chopped fresh basil on top and serve with steamed broccolini and mixed squash. This recipe was FANTASTIC!!! Enjoy!!!

 

What international style cooking have you experimented with and have you liked the results.