So I found some lovely spaghetti squash (organic, por supuesto) at the farmer's market, and all I needed was some spaghetti sauce. I went to our local market, which, this being Manhattan's Upper West Side, they had a nice organic selection. But reading every single label, I saw they all had SUGAR.
You may or may not have been following the news that sugar may cause cancer. According the The New York Times, "
Is Sugar Toxic?":
If it’s sugar that causes insulin resistance, they say, then the conclusion is hard to avoid that sugar causes cancer — some cancers, at least — radical as this may seem and despite the fact that this suggestion has rarely if ever been voiced before publicly. For just this reason, neither of these men will eat sugar or high-fructose corn syrup, if they can avoid it.
Our son has had a cancerous growth when he was an infant, so we skip the pesticides and the sugar (perhaps you should, too)
So what's a busy but non-toxic mom to do?
I went to make it from scratch, only to find the organic tomatoes all come in cans, which either have the endocrine-disrupting BPA. Or, the BPA-free just have ANOTHER chemical, what's depressingly known as a
"regrettable substitution," which means it's free of BPA but not something else that's harmful. (read more here).
But, happily I found this:
Organic, glassed strained tomatoes (you can get $10 off your order using code PIX328 here.)
I ended up throwing together a sauce that was not only fast and easy, it was SO DELICIOUS that we were kind of dipping into it plain. BONUS: we used leftovers, including "leftover wine"--yes my husband has some health issues so he can't drink, and it's not my usual policy to drink a whole bottle of wine.
TRY THIS RECIPE and THROW IN YOUR OWN LEFTOVERS:
1 bottle Organic, glassed strained tomatoes
2 tsp or more organic dried oregano
2 good shakes organic black pepper
sea salt to taste (I use a home made nettle salt)
1 small white onion, diced
2 cloves organic garlic, diced
1/4-1/2 cup leftover organic red wine, something full-bodied like a cabernet works well (optional but delicious - also, the alcohol part burns off when you cook)
2 tblsp organic olive oil - I used a high antioxidant, one of the few "non adulterated" olive oils like California Olive Ranch (yes, not to freak you out, but much olive oil on the market is rancid and or fake/adulterated).
If you want a touch of sweetness, try some organic coconut (1 tsp-1 tblsp) sugar or honey. If you want to go all natural Italian momma, then add a carrot and cook it long enough for the sweetness to come out (then compost the carrot, or mash it into the sauce)
**Use a good quality enameled iron pan--I used Le Creuset.
Couldn't be easier:
Sauté the onion at medium heat in the olive oil until translucent and just starting to brown. Pour in the rest of the ingredients except the garlic. Pour yourself a glass of wine. Heat until it starts to bubble gently. At this point you can also add in leftover vegetables, etc. Stir occasionally while you drink the wine. It can be done in a few minutes if you're in a hurry. Cook for about 15-20 minutes for something thicker, appropriate for pizza. Add the garlic in for the last 5 minutes of cooking both to get a more garlicky flavor and to preserve the antioxidant properties.
Sorry, this picture looks a bit anti-gravity, but you get the idea. PRO-TIP: if you leave it out overnight, the flavors mingle even more nicely. Buon Appetito!
