Proof that my love affair started early! Even to this day a satisfying bowl of pasta makes me this happy. As you can tell it doesn’t have to be complex. Ditalini pasta and sauce probably won’t make an appearance on Mario Batali’s next menu but I am sure he would also agree that simplicity is best. I still believe that like all Italian food, less is more. The key is having few but high quality ingredients. This is the pasta sauce I grew up on and through my college and non-cooking years my mother, Maria, would prepare in batches for me containers of  sauce so whenever I wanted could get a taste of home.  It is this ‘plain sauce’ as it’s called in my family (NEVER GRAVY!)  that made me fall in love with all food! Included is my mom’s sauce recipe, a much prized possession as people in our hometown paid money for it. Best with some capellini or penne and topped with freshly grated parm, cracked black pepper and some basil chiffonade…perfection!

• sautee olive oil (enough to coat bottom of pan + a little more) with garlic until golden
• add canned crushed tomatoes and basil
• add salt (go easy)  and pepper(fresh ground)
• bring to boil and then quickly turn to simmer
• adjust salt during cooking if needed
• cook at least 1 hour until consistency is as desired, add tomato paste to thicken if needed and cook out