[JJNJustin]

I dont like hot chili flakes and wine together in sauces.

1 tbl sounds like a boat load, I usually use 1/4 tsp in similar recipes and find it on the spicy side. You must like hot spicy Thai and Indian food.

Here are a few of my pasta sauce tips:

Score an X shaped cross on the top of fresh tomatoes, poach in boiling water for 1-3 minutes, remove, allow to cool, peel, core, and roughly dice the flesh for sauce. Fresh tomatoes taste incredible in sauces, and cleaning them up this way gets rid of the skin and seeds. Chopped tomatoes in a can are much easier, but you can taste the difference.

Garlic- dont go haywire on the garlic. Too much will overpower the dish and give it a harsh, hot flavor. 1-4 cloves per recipe, as long as you're not making a huge batch will suffice. You can mince, slice, or smash your garlic. I prefer slicing or dicing, as smashing 1-2 cloves results in unequal distribution in the sauce. The longer you cook the garlic, the more it mellows. If you burn it, it takes on an altogether different flavor. For stronger garlic flavor, add some of the garlic later on in the dish.

Fresh thyme and sometimes oregano is very good in tomato sauces. When using dried herbs, always use 4x less than called for fresh herbs.

Port wine is the wine of choice for tomato sauces. Burgundy, Pinot Noir, Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon will do in a pinch, but the tannins are higher and result a slightly more bitter flavor. Port Wine is sweeter.

If using basil, dont add it to the recipe until the very end, as cooking greatly reduces the flavor.

Invest in good quality parmigian-reggiano cheese, even if a small block. The powdered stuff in the green Kraft can is just not even in the same ballpark.

For more concentrated tomato flavor, simmer the sauce without the cover for longer time, allowing more water to evaporate out.

For a richer sauce start by sauteeing a mirepoix base of evenly diced carrot, celery, and onion (1:1:2)in olive oil along with garlic and fresh herbs. Then add your wine and fresh tomatoes and simmer over low heat.

For bolognese sauce, add a little milk or half and half. True bolognese sauce has chicken livers, but they are gross and full of hormones and whatnot.

Adding a 1/2 cup of good quality green or black olives will give the sauce another taste dimension.

Dont forget to season the sauce with salt and pepper to bring out the garlic and other flavors.

For more healthly pasta dishes, buy green pasta (pasta with spinach in the dough).

When making pasta from scratch use bread flour because of its high gluten content. All-purpose flour makes crappy gummy soft pasta. Bread flour is high gluten and similar to the durhum flours used to make pasta in Italy. Always make fresh pasta first because the dough has to rest and required a lot of kneading and rolling to build to gluten up. The rolled pasta has to be dried before it is dropped in salted boiling water.

Always salt your pasta water 2 tbls kosher salt + 6 quarts water for every 16 oz dry pasta. This may seem too salty, but the pasta doesnt pick up all the salt, and required this much salt to be properly seasoned. Always slightly undercook your pasta (al dente) and then re-toss it in the sauce for a few minutes before serving.

-J