Springtime is Pest Time

Spring is the time when flowers start blooming and the weather gets warmer. Did you know it’s also the time when destructive household pests come out of hiding? A little early prevention now can potentially save you big headaches and costly repairs later. Click above for Eagle’s pest facts and tips!

Best Sauce Recipe

Mary Ellen’s Secret Marinara

Ingredients:

1 medium Vidalia onion, chopped coarsely

1 28 oz can Tuttorosso peeled plum tomatoes, pulsed in food processor

1 28 oz can Tuttorosso crushed tomatoes

1 6 oz can Tuttorosso paste

1/3 cup chopped fresh parsley

a few fresh basil leaves, snipped or chopped

3 medium garlic cloves, peeled and left whole, slightly smashed

1 T sugar (or less to taste)

Olive oil (we like Filippo Berio)

In 7 quart dutch oven/sauce pot, heat about two tablespoons olive oil and add onion. Cook on medium heat until soft. Do not brown or burn the onion. Add tomato paste. Fill paste can with water and pour into pot. Stir paste and water together until incorporated. Cook for a couple of minutes on medium heat. Add pulsed and crushed tomatoes. Stir. Add parsley, basil leaves, whole garlic cloves and sugar. Stir, then drizzle remaining tablespoon olive oil on top. Simmer for at least two hours, stirring occasionally. Be careful not to let the heat get too high so that the sauce at the bottom of the pot burns. If sauce starts burning, sauce will turn bitter. If you’d like, you can cool sauce and put into airtight containers or freezer bags and freeze for later use. Or store in fridge for up to 5 days.

Serve with your favorite style pasta and freshly grated parmesan cheese. Add a simple green salad and fresh bread for a perfect meal.

If you want your sauce with meat, brown your favorite meatballs and/or sausage and add to sauce after sauce has been cooking for at least one hour. Simmer for at least another hour before serving to allow flavors to blend and meat to fully cook.