Greetings from Syracuse!

I’m home on Spring Break for a few days. Essentially this means that instead of doing work in Baltimore, I’m doing work at home with March Madness on in the background. Seriously, when I finish this progam I’m making EVERYONE call me Dr. McDermott. My parents included.

I’ve left the house once- to go to the dentist. Wild and exciting life as usual. But Kevin is always providing me with endless entertainment, and it’s nice to be home for a few days.

I made this dish last week in Baltimore, and it provided the GS and me with meals for about 6 days. I never got sick of it, and if he did he’s smart enough to not say so. It reheats really well- either in the microwave, or if you add a little bit of water to the sauce and simmer it on the stove. It’s nice and spicy and filling. Perfect for this balmy spring weather we’re having. Oh wait, it’s still snowing. Perfect for that.

Spicy Pork Ragu (serves 8-10)

slightly adapted from Bon Appetit

1 medium onion, quartered

1 cup roughly chopped carrot

2 stalks of celery, roughly chopped

4 garlic cloves, minced

1 heaping tablespoon dried oregano

1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes

1 heaping teaspoon dried parsley

1 28-ounce can whole peeled tomatoes

1 pound hot Italian sausage (I bought it out of the casings- and if you don’t like spice you can use sweet)

1 pound ground pork

1 tablespoon tomato paste

2 pounds any short cut pasta

salt, pepper, Parmesan cheese

Brown the sausage and pork in a medium sauce pan. Once they are cooked through, remove with a slotted spoon and set aside.

Combine the onion, celery, carrot, and garlic in a food processor. You don’t want them completely liquified- just a fine chop. You can do it by hand if you want to practice your knife skills. Throw the vegetable mixture into the residual fat with a little salt and pepper, and cook down for 7-8 minutes.

Put the tomatoes, oregano, crushed red pepper, and parsley into the food processor and blend completely. Add to the vegetable mixture with the tomato paste and 1 cup of water.

Stir to combine, and add the meat back in. Allow it to simmer on medium-low heat for at least one hour, adding more water if you want a more sauce-like consistency.

Toss with pasta, and top with Parmesan cheese.

Mmmmm.

Make this for your friends to console them while watching their brackets fail miserably. If only Kevin liked spicy food- my bracket is beating all 7 of his.