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Tomato Sauce with Celery & Mint (Σάλτσα με Σέλινο και Δυόσμο)
Serves 4
Tomato Sauce with Celery and Mint is for days when you want a quick meal, with lots of flavor, that doesn’t take much effort. From start to finish, this full-flavored sauce is finished in about 30 minutes. Serve over pasta with fresh goat cheese, if you eat dairy. Watercress and curly endive salad, lightly dressed with vinegar and olive oil, goes well with pasta and this sauce.
2 cups diced onions, 1/4” dice
3/4 cup finely sliced stalks from leaf celery
3 Tbsp. olive oil
Salt
Freshly ground black pepper
1 tsp. Aleppo pepper or 1/2 tsp. crushed red pepper
1 14.5-ounce can crushed tomatoes
3/4 cup dry white wine
3/4 cup finely shredded leaves from leaf celery
2 Tbsp. minced mint
1 Tbsp. minced garlic
1 tsp. sugar (optional)
Sauté onions and celery stalks, lightly seasoned with salt and freshly ground black pepper, in olive oil until onion starts to turn golden. Stir in Aleppo pepper and cook for one minute. Stir in crushed tomatoes and wine and bring to a boil. Cook rapidly for five minutes, stirring constantly. Turn down heat to medium, stir in celery, mint, and garlic and simmer for 10 minutes. Taste and add optional sugar if sauce is too acidic. Simmer for 5 minutes or until sauce is the thickness you desire. Taste and add salt and freshly ground black pepper, if needed.
