Gloria's Little Italy is a cute, family Italian restaurant in downtown Provo. Rebekah and I love this sauce. We found a recipe online from someone who talked to Gloria about the sauce (Russcooks.com). This is our adaptation and it makes a lot. I would suggest halving the recipe or planning on leftovers. The sauce also freezes well.
The Minestrone:
1 Tbsp. Olive oil
pinch red pepper flakes
4 large cloves crushed garlic
1 large onion
1 medium carrot
2 stalks celery
1 can chicken broth (or use equivalent in bouillon)
The Sauce:
2 large cans whole, peeled tomatoes and juice
2 ½ small cans diced tomatoes with juice
2 Tbsp. sugar
1 tsp. kosher salt
2 Tbsp. fresh parsley, finely chopped
handful fresh shredded basil
1 tsp. dried basil
1 to 1 1/2 cups cream
1. Mince very fine the onion in a food processor. Heat oil in skillet over medium heat until shimmering, but not smoking. Add red pepper flakes to bloom for several seconds. Add onion to oil and sauté until clarified.
2. Mince very fine the carrot and celery stalks in a food processor. Add carrots and celery to pan. Brown nothing!
3. Reduce temperature and add minced garlic. Sauté for 30 seconds. Add chicken stock and push to back burner on stove to simmer and reduce.
4. Put tomatoes in the food processor and blend, but don’t puree (just chop smaller). Put tomatoes into a large pot. Stir in sugar and salt.
5. Pour the minestone pan into tomatoes and simmer until needed, probably at least 4 hours. During this time, add in the garlic, more olive oil and, an hour before using, the basil and parsley.
6. Stir in cream just before removing from stove and return to serving temperature.
Serve hot over pasta (thicker works better such as Cavatelli) and sprinkle with Parmesan or Romano cheese. Variation: In the summer, use fresh garden tomatoes instead of canned.
