ULTIMATE ARRABIATA SAUCE AND 6 WAYS TO USE IT

- METHOD -

Fry the onions in olive oil over very low heat until soft. Add the garlic and fry for two minutes. Then add the tomatoes, sugar, chilli and salt, place the lid on and cook over very low heat for 30 minutes. Stir in the chopped basil for the final 5 minutes of cooking. Spoon sauce into a jar and keep in the fridge for up to four days.

Or freeze the sauce in 250ml portions in small freezer bags, ready for you to whip out at a moment’s notice to create scrummy meals.

SIX WAYS TO USE OUR ULTIMATE ARRABIATA SAUCE

1. Serve it over spaghetti or penne for a classical pasta Arrabiata. Remember to grate over loads of Parmesan and add extra torn basil.

2. Use it to make a Margherita pizza on steroids! Buy a ready-made pizza base, spoon over Arrabiata sauce, then top pizza with loads of burrata or fresh mozzarella (the one in water, not the leathery one sold in blocks). Pop pizza into a fiery hot oven. When it comes out bubbling, tear over lots of basil and serve right away.

3. Slice aubergines in 5mm thick rounds, brush with olive oil on both sides and fry aubergines in a non-stick frying pan until they start softening. Spoon a layer of Arrabiata sauce in the bottom of an oven-proof casserole. Top with fried aubergine slices, then a thin layer of grated mozzarella. Repeat layers and end off with a layer of mozzarella. Pop into a 180 ˚C oven for 30 minutes until golden and bubbly.

4. Make a veggie tian with a difference! Slice baby aubergines, patty pans and courgettes quite thinly widthwise. Spoon Arrabiata sauce in the bottom of an oven-proof dish with a 5cm rim. Nestle alternating slices of aubergine, patty pans and courgette upright (not flat) in the sauce and keep on packing in circles until the dish is full. Spoon over a last bit of Arrabiata sauce and pop into a 180˚C oven for about 30 minutes until veggies are soft. Serve with a crusty garlic baguette and green salad.

5. Make the ultimate chilli tomato, cheese and ham toastie!  Place a few slices of ham on a slice of bread. Spoon Arrabiata sauce over ham and top sauce with loads of grated mozzarella. Cover with second slice of bread and into a Panini press it goes to toast until golden.

6. Cut a sheet of all-butter puff pastry in half. Place salami, smoked chicken or sliced chorizo on one half of the pastry (NB: leave a 1cm border of pastry clear all around). Top meat with Arrabiata sauce and tear over some basil. Cover with thick slices of mozzarella cheese. Cover with the other half of puff pastry and use a fork to press all along the edges of the pastry to form a seal. Make a single cut in the top of the pastry to allow for steam to escape. Pop pastry onto a baking sheet lined with baking paper and bake in a 200 ˚C oven until golden and cooked through – about 30 minutes.

Recipe concept & photography by Lizet Hartley.

Lizet Hartley is a freelance stills and reel food stylist, food photographer and recipe developer. In her spare time she – rather predictably – cooks. Get more of her recipes on her blog at http://www.melkkos-merlot.co.za