Semi-Homemade Marinara

I love making any kind of pasta with marinara. I'd make it every day if my husband wouldn't gag. He only wants spaghetti once every few weeks, at best. However, if I wait and only do it once a month or so, he gets excited. He has a fold-out chair in the kitchen watching me make this. Of course, if you're watching your waistline, you should wait until a day where you've otherwise consumed fewer calories/points, 'cause it's not the lightest meal you'll ever eat.

First, get a couple of tomatoes. I like the beefsteak tomatoes you can get at the store in a 3-pack, like this. They're really sweet, and big enough to be used for large quantities of food.

Chop them up and throw them in a pan. Tear up some dill and rosemary to cook in with the tomatoes. You'll want to start it out on low and work it up to medium. This takes a while, so be prepared. To blow some time, you could do what I do and chop up the third tomato, put it in a bowl with a little sugar, and get a spoon! It's one of my favorite breakfasts.

Eventually, the tomatoes start falling apart a bit and giving you a glossy mush.

Looks less than tasty, right?! We all know that's going to be a yummy sauce though, so we'll deal with it. Go ahead and brown some ground beef and chop and add any other veggies you'd like in with the beef. We've been very veggie-heavy, so I'm giving the boys a day off from it. Just the 'maters.

Once they've simmered a bit and are this pile of mush, it's time to throw in a can of tomato sauce. The cheap stuff works just fine, just make sure it's not salted.

Throw in some spices. I'd usually be chopping garlic right now, but I forgot that I'd used my entire bulb on the garlic beef. *Sigh* So I have to use garlic powder. Here's the rest of my spice army.

You want about a tablespoon of garlic (or one minced clove), a tsp of each tarragon and cilantro, and about 1/2 a tsp of cumin and coriander seed. For pepper, use what you like. We like pepper here, and we use about a tablespoon.

Add the meat. Now, you're off the hook for a while while this turns into a wonderful spaghetti sauce. Keep it between low and medium.

Once it's smelling and looking attractive to you, turn it way low and cover it, and start a pot of water boiling.

Add noodles of your choosing. We're doing penne tonight, because I love the Barilla penne for this dish.

 Add about a tablespoon of a good extra virgin olive oil. The Star Special Reserve is my favorite, because I like the Omega 3 DHA. It's not too expensive, and the flavor is fantastic. Stir it in gently so that the noodles get a little coating and don't stick together.

Give your sauce a stir and make sure it's not scalding. You can also do like my husband does with the noodles and add some various spices to them, but I don't like over-spiced food, so I keep it more natural.

Once the noodles are boiled however you like, drain them and serve up!

...And if you have kids, get good pictures of spaghetti faces. :)

I love pasta face - even though if it weren't for feeding him, there'd be cabernet in that sauce.

Now, the health facts. 

Assuming a 1/2 cup serving of pasta and 1/4th of the sauce, so we're probably over-shooting, just to be safe...

472 calories, 23.9 grams of fat, 28.8 carbs, and 33.6 grams of protein. 

WW PP: 12

I hope you like it, and let me know how it goes!