I’ve been totally intrigued with Chef’s Academy. It’s one of those reality cooking shows on the Bravo channel (of course). Only this one’s even sleazier than Hell’s Kitchen. The cheftestants include an platinum blonde Orange County housewife whose husband is a big game hunter (since when is a giraffe, big game?), a French porn star who’s changed his name—(like no one’s going to find out), and a Navy submarine cook.
The star is Jean Christophe Novelli, a Michelin award-winning chef with restaurants in London, France and South Africa, and voted “World’s Sexiest Chef” (who comes into town to run the school with his pregnant girlfriend). Wow…I couldn’t have written a crazier cast of characters.
Having said that, I’m really interested in some of the food he demonstrates for his students on the show. The chef cooked his Grandma Louise’s Tomato Sauce using a very different technique which made me want to try it. All the more as the cheftestants ooo-ed and ahhh-ed over tastes of it. Novelli has videos of the preparation on Bravo’s website if anyone wants to see it being made.
These are the ingredients used in the sauce.
Tomato & Basil with a supporting cast
I cut the Roma tomatoes in half and put them face down in a hot pan. Added some salt & pepper, a pinch of sugar and a dash of vanilla along with a couple of sprigs of fresh thyme and 2 fresh bay leaves. I let this cook for five minutes or so, then used a potato masher and gently mashed them so they would release their juices. The heat was turned down to simmer and it cooked, uncovered for over an hour.
Simmering
Then I threw in about three whole cloves of garlic and some whole leaves of fresh basil and let it cook about 15 minutes more. Olive oil was added next, about ½ cup and the whole thing simmered for 10 more minutes.
Basil & Garlic Added
Done. Mixed with cooked pasta and served with a green salad, this was our dinner.
Ready to eat
I have to tell you—Chef Novelli’s Grandmother Louise knows her tomato sauce. It was fantastic. Surprising with the whole cloves of garlic and leaves of basil, but simply delicious.
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