10-Minute Meat and Tomato Sauce

The other night, I really wasn't feeling that well.  I wanted to throw together a quick dinner, but I didn't have any spaghetti sauce in the house.  The Monkey Scientist had some leftover meat from his famous Superbowl Chili (I would have shared the recipe but I've been expressly forbidden by his mother), and I had a can of crushed tomatoes, a lemon, and some whole wheat penne.  Who knew that would be enough to throw together a quick and easy dinner?



This is (in the words of Chris Traeger) literally the easiest homemade tomato sauce ever.  It's cheaper and healthier than a jar of Prego, plus even more delicious.  You could season it any way you liked, but keeping it simple is pretty spectacular.  And, aside from cooking the meat which you'd have to do regardless, it can only possibly add 5 minutes to the time it would take to open a jar of sauce.  What more could you ask for?



This sauce is yummy just on penne, or would be great in a lasagna or on stuffed shells.  It's fresh from the lemon, and with a little kick from the red pepper flakes.  Vegetarians can skip the meat and it would still be great.  If you wanted to crush your own tomatoes in the summertime I'm sure it would kick it up another notch.  This will be replacing the Prego in my cabinet - although I'm not sure I can resist Trader Joe's sauce when I'm there!



10-Minute Meat and Tomato Sauce
adapted from 101 Cookbooks

Ingredients
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
1 1/2 teaspoons crushed red pepper flakes
1/2 teaspoon fine grain sea salt
3 medium cloves of garlic, finely chopped
1/2 lb ground beef or turkey
1 28-ounce can crushed red tomatoes (don't use store brand)
pinch of sugar
zest of one lemon (less if you don't like lemon)
salt and pepper, to taste

Instructions
1. Combine the olive oil, red pepper flakes, sea salt, and garlic in a cold saucepan. Stir while you heat the saucepan over medium-high heat, saute just 45 seconds or so until everything is fragrant - you don't want the garlic to brown.
2. Add meat and cook until no pink remains, about 5 minutes.
3. Stir in the tomatoes and sugar, and heat to a gentle simmer. This takes just a couple minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Stir in the lemon zest.