Italian Braised Roots with Sunday Sauce & Rigatoni

It's not Sunday but it's a perfect time for this Sunday sauce infused with tomatoes and porcini mushrooms. This is the kind of meal that cannot be rushed. It takes time and you will be well rewarded for all your hard work sitting and waiting while the oven does the real job at hand.
This Sunday sauce could easily be your go-to sauce for canning or large family dinners. The longer you simmer it over low heat the better it will taste. In my recipe I allow an hour for it to cook but you could go up to eight for maximum flavor.
I am adding this recipes to my folder of Favorites and with good reason. This was the perfect meal to serve to my husband for his birthday.

One Year Ago Today Lentil Hazelnut Burgers with Sweet Carrot Aioli and Onion Shoestrings

Acorn and summer squash, carrots, yellow onions, potatoes and tomatoes braised in a slow simmered Sunday tomato gravy with meaty soy curls and rigatoni.

Sunday Sauce
makes 2 cups
2 tbl extra virgin olive oil
1 small yellow onion, small dice
1 oz dried morel or porcini mushrooms
3 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 cup dry white wine
1 tsp salt
1 tsp dried oregano
1/2 tsp crushed red peppers
1/2 tsp pepper
1-28 oz can crushed tomatoes

Sweat the onion in olive oil until soft and fragrant, 7 minutes.  Add the dried mushrooms and garlic and saute to toast and brown, 3-4 minutes.  Deglaze the pan with white wine, scraping any bits off the bottom. Season with salt, oregano, crushed red peppers and pepper. Add the tomatoes and bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer, cover and cook over medium-low for one hour.
Transfer to a blender and blend until smooth. Taste and adjust seasonings with salt and pepper.

Italian Braised Roots
serves 4
2 tbl extra virgin olive oil
1 small yellow onion, medium dice
1 celery stalk, small dice
1 carrot, large dice
2 cups acorn squash, large dice
1 summer squash, large dice
1 medium russet potato, unpeeled, large dice
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 bay leaf
1/2 cup dry white wine
1 recipe Sunday sauce
1 1/2 cups dried soy curls
8 oz rigatoni pasta
3 tbl chopped fresh parsley

Preheat the oven to 375.
In a dutch oven, saute the onion, celery and carrot. Season with salt and pepper and cook for 7 minutes. Add the acorn and summer squash, potato, garlic and bay leaf. Cook 7 minutes more to brown. Deglaze the pan with white wine. Add the Sunday sauce and cover.
Transfer to the oven and cook for 40 minutes. Add the soy curls, cover and cook 20 minutes more.
Cook the pasta in boiling salted water to al dente and drain.
Toss the pasta and parsley in the vegetables and serve.

Spicy Chickpeas in Tomato Gravy, Punjabi-Style Greens

Punjabi greens is a dish from Northern India of mustard greens, spinach, spices, garlic and ginger. They taste great as a side, as I had it here but also work impressively as a spread on Naan or grilled Roti.

Spicy Chickpeas in Tomato Gravy
2 tbl extra virgin olive oil
2 large sweet onions, 1/4" half moons
sea salt
3 jalapenos, seeded or not depending on your heat tolerance, chopped
2" piece ginger, roughly chopped
8 garlic cloves, smashed
2 tbl cumin
1 tbl ground coriander
1/2 tsp cayenne
1-15oz can diced tomatoes
1 cup crushed tomatoes
2-15 oz cans chickpeas, drained and rinsed
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
vegan sour cream, optional
Naan flatbread, grilled or toasted

Heat the oil and saute the onions with salt over medium-high heat until they start to brown and are soft, 10 minutes.
In a food processor or small blender, combine the jalapeno, ginger and garlic and pulse into a paste. Add to the onions and saute for 4 minutes more. Add cumin, coriander and cayenne and toast for 2 minutes. Add all of the tomatoes and simmer for 5 minutes. Add the chickpeas and simmer for 20 minutes more. Season with more salt and garnish with cilantro, sour cream and grilled naan.

Punjabi-Style Greens
1 bunch mustard greens, ends trimmed, roughly chopped
1/2 lb spinach, ends trimmed, roughly chopped
1 jalapeno, seeded, chopped
3 garlic cloves, smashed
1" piece ginger, chopped
1 small red onion, small dice
sea salt
2 tbl extra virgin olive oil

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil and add the mustard greens. Cook for 2 minutes then add the spinach and blanch 30 seconds more. Drain.
Add the jalapeno, garlic, ginger and red onion to a food processor and pulse until small and chunky. Add the mustard greens and spinach and pulse until the greens are in small bits.
Heat the oil in a saute pan and add the mixture. Saute for 7 minutes and season with salt.