COMMUNITY VOICES: Carla Guthrie’s Italian-Inspired Kitchen in Luther

**Editor’s Note:** Hey there, friends! We’re excited to introduce our new column, Community Voices. This is a cheerful space where Luther Register readers can get to know each other better. Have a delicious recipe like Carla’s? A fascinating story about Luther’s history? A book review or a personal perspective you’d love to share? We’d love for you to share it here! Check out the submission form below to share your ideas with us. We can’t wait to hear from you! Special thanks to Carla for being our first contributor. This idea sprang up recently when we met for lunch at Our Town Eatery. We had great burgers and a great conversation.

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A Taste of Tuscany
by Carla Guthrie

There is no such thing as Italian food. Shocking, right? Italy is a political denomination for a union of very culturally different groups. It didn’t unite into a single nation until 1860, and it wasn’t until the 1970’s, with the economic boom, that contact between people from different regions became widespread. It was mainly due to the migration of people from the rural South to the industrial cities of the North.

Italy was not and still isn’t a melting pot. Each city still has its own dialect and culinary traditions. It’s not uncommon to visit two cities as little as 45 miles from each other and find specialty dishes that are unique to the locality. While these differences lead to some challenging dynamics, I think that the variety actually lends to Italy a charm that other countries don’t have. It reminds me of a sauce my mother used to make when I was a child: In the central region of Tuscany, it’s affectionately known as “fake ragù.” I don’t know about other areas of the country. If you are bored with jar sauces, this simple pasta condiment is easy and relatively fast to make compared to its meat-laced counterpart. If you are in the mood for something light yet flavorful, if you are a vegetarian/vegan, or simply don’t have any ground beef on hand, this is the sauce for you.

Vegetable Ragù

Ingredients for 1 lb of  pasta:

• 1 Tablespoon of olive oil
• 1 carrot
• 1 stalk of celery
• 1/2 an onion (yellow or red)
• 1 clove of garlic
• 2 fresh sage leaves (if you have them)
• 1/4 cup white wine (optional)
• 1 cup of water
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 can (14 ounces) of crushed tomatoes (just tomatoes and salt, no other spices or herbs)
• Salt 

Instructions

Mince the carrot, celery, onion, and garlic. It has to be fairly fine but not mushy. On low heat, warm up a medium-sized saucepan and add the olive oil. Once the olive oil is warm, turn to medium, add the vegetables and sage, if using, and stir to coat them. Let them sauté for a few minutes until the color dulls and the onions are transparent. Add the wine and let it evaporate for about 4-5 minutes. Once the liquid has reduced, add the water and the bay leaf, bring to a boil, then turn down to low and cover. Cook for 15 minutes, and then add the crushed tomatoes and a pinch or two of salt to taste. Continue to simmer uncovered for another 20-30 minutes, stirring once in a while, until the sauce loses its bright red color and turns more orange. If necessary, add water a Tablespoon at a time. Serve over your favorite shape of pasta. Add Parmigiano if you like. Enjoy!

About the Author

Carla Guthrie has been a resident of Luther since 2017. Since then she has collected eight cats and a lot of great memories. She loves cooking and baking, a passion inherited from her chef father. She enjoys preparing dishes from recipes he passed down to her, but she also explores other cuisines and ventures into creating new concoctions. Her mainstay, however, is her Tuscan bread that she has been baking for the past three decades. She is an avid reader with an extensive home library. She is also a writer working on stories whenever she can. She has short stories published in two anthologies, Celebrating the Seasons and People, Places and Pets, both by Pen and Keyboard Writers. Copies are available at CD Harris Design Co. at 122 S. Main Street in Luther.

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Let’s Hear from You

Community Voices will accept all kinds of interesting stories. Obviously, we want to keep it G-rated and away from politics and complaints. Please submit something! The plan is to run a column each week, likely on Mondays. Who’s next? Our hope is this new column will be just one effort designed to strengthen our community bond. Here is the submission form.