tomato basil campanelle

There's always a silver lining in every cloud... better yet, in every hurricane storm -- like, using the entire contents of my fridge to make a homemade sauce.  In fear of an outage and all my fresh groceries purchased last week going to waste, I incorporated ground turkey, chopped mushrooms, and fresh basil into Mario Batali's basic tomato sauce recipe, and served it over a bed of campanelle, to make a hearty meal to see us through the storm.

Basic Tomato Sauce adapted from NYMag by Chef Mario Batali

1⁄4 cup extra-virgin olive oil 1 large Spanish onion, chopped into 1⁄4-inch dice 4 garlic cloves, peeled and thinly sliced 3 tablespoons chopped fresh thyme leaves or 1 tablespoon dried 1⁄2 medium carrot, finely shredded 1 28-ounce can peeled whole tomatoes, crushed by hand, with their juices Salt to taste

Instructions Heat the oil in a 3-quart saucepan over medium heat. Add the onion and garlic, and cook until soft and light golden brown, about 8 to 10 minutes. Add the thyme and carrot and cook 5 more minutes, until the carrot is quite soft. Add the tomatoes and juice, and bring to a boil, stirring often. Lower the heat and simmer for 30 minutes until the sauce is as thick as hot cereal. Season to taste with salt. This sauce keeps for 1 week in the refrigerator and up to 6 months in the freezer.