Red ~ Blog All About It
This year, one of the Challenges I signed up for is Blog All About It, hosted by The Herd Presents. The guideline is basically a blogging prompt challenge. Each month there’s a different prompt that you can interpret as you’d like then create a blog post around it. The 2018 list of prompts can be seen here on my Challenge Page. I will be posting for this Challenge on the 2nd Saturday of each month.
Why did I choose this Challenge? Well, if you have followed this blog, you know that I love Challenges, even though I may not complete all the ones I sign up for. I just find it to be fun. Another reason I decided to do this Challenge, is that I realized it has been ages since I have actually blogged, other than posting reviews, interviews, guest posts, giveaways, etc. Over the past few years, being busy organizing VBTs, I have slacked off with one of the main reasons I joined the Book Blogging Community. At the time, I told myself that I would create a blog just as a way to keep track of the books I read with a few notes on the specific titles. I was very lucky that I met Vicki from I’d Rather Be At The Beach who took me under her wing, mentored me and answered all my questions. I went back through my posts to see how it all began in 2009 with my first post, which can be seen here. And 8½ years later, I still thoroughly enjoy being part of this community.
This month’s prompt is: Red
It’s February so that means Valentine’s Day. Thoughts of red roses or red hearts filled with chocolates.
But I decided to share a family recipe, a red gravy, or as some say sauce. My maternal grandmother Rose was a phenomenal cook and baker. She was born in Caserta, Italy and at the age of 3 months entered the U.S. with her parents. She was a petite spitfire, up at 5 am every day and didn’t stop until she went to bed, cooking, gardening, mowing the grass with a push lawn mower, etc. She used to say that she was going to live to be 100, but if we made her mad, 105. She passed away in 2001, 4 months short of her 105th birthday (She is the one in the middle).
As a child, I used to love helping her when she cooked, especially when she was making homemade pasta. I have, which I treasure, a notebook full of her recipes in her handwriting. However, most of her recipes don’t include the exact measurements for the ingredients. When I would ask how much, it would be a little of this or a handful of that.
One of the recipes that got passed down was what she called a red loose gravy. She would tell me that it was a recipe that came from her paese in Caserta.
I have made this many times over the years. However, when I tell people what is in this red gravy, most people make a face. Until they taste it, then they ask for the recipe. Why it’s called a “loose gravy”, I’m really not sure.
The ingredients and I apologize in advance for not being able to provide measurements.
For a pound of pasta:
*2 cans Kitchen Ready tomatoes
*1 can medium black olives
*1 bag pignoli (pine nuts)
*raisins
*Parsley, basil, garlic powder, black pepper, oil, and sugar.
Bring to a boil, stirring frequently. Then simmer for approx 3 hours, stirring frequently especially the bottom of the pan as it sometimes tends to burn. If it becomes thick, add some water.
The finished product!!!
If you have any questions regarding this red loose gravy, don’t hesitate to ask. And if you try it, let me know what you think.
Oh yum, I never thought of adding olives to my sauce.
And adding the raisins sweetens it up.
Oh that sauce looks so delicious I could lick the screen!
I hope you get a chance to make it!
I love family food history stories, Cheryl. I will definitely give your nonna’s red gravy a try. 🙂
Sophia:
I hope you try it. Let me know what you think!
I’m going to have my husband try this recipe – he does a lot of the cooking and is always trying new things. Your Grandmother Rose sounds awesome and she must have been a spitfire to live to be almost 105. My grandfather is almost 97 and yes, I would describe him the same way. He and I have a very special relationship and I like to tell people I hope I inherited his genes.
Barb:
If your husband has any questions regarding the “gravy”, don’t hesitate to ask.
Too funny, I always say the same thing about me having my grandmother’s genes. It was just in the last few years of her life that she had dementia but up until then, still cooked, was in the garden, etc. The one thing I didn’t get from her was her baking skills.
Enjoy every minute with your grandfather. He sounds like a special guy!
That pasta looks amazing
Carole:
I hope you try it. It really is good. I have served it on so many occasions and people look at me funny but then they want the recipe.
Got me curious with those ingredients. I will have to try it. Does it go well with anything else? or just pasta?
Hi:
Thank you for stopping by.
That’s a great question. I have always made it with pasta so not sure. If you do try, using it with something else, please let me know because I definitely would try it.