Note: I'll do my best to make this a "recipe," but I have to warn you that my cooking is haphazard at best. I tend to cook with whatever is handy and whatever strikes my fancy, so no recipe stays static. In other words, if you don't like what I'm cooking, come back in a few minutes; it's bound to have changed. For that reason I've divided ingredients into "basic" and "optional." You pretty much have to use the basic ingredients in order to call this marinara. (Okay, maybe you don't have to use cayenne pepper to call it marinara, but I do). Experiment with the others and see what you come up with. You'll notice too I don't really list amounts. That's because I have no clue. I'll try to give you an idea as I talk you through the directions.

Warning: If you use all the crushed red, cayenne, and black pepper as I suggest, you marinara will come out decidedly ... zesty. Keep plenty of bread on hand.

• olive oil
• chopped onions
• minced garlic - "fresh" not dried!
• fresh mushrooms
• tomatoes
• basil
• oregano
• crushed red peppers
• cayenne pepper
• black pepper

• tomato paste
• black olives
• chopped broccoli
• raw (peeled & deveined) shrimp
• dates
• red wine
• romano cheese
• shredded monterey jack cheese
• sun dried tomatoes

Saute a couple of chopped onions and several (for me this usually means 4 or 5--sometimes more) cloves of garlic in olive oil, toss in some sliced mushrooms and lots of chopped tomato (6, 8 10? I don't know how many people you're feeding. Rebecca, just for you I tell you my super-shortcut secret. Use a can of crushed tomato and a can of diced tomato and no one will know the difference). Add water as necessary. Then lots of basil and oregano (fresh if possible, but dried will work) and crushed red pepper, a few dashes of cayenne, and a little black pepper for balance. Let it simmer for a long time, if at all possible, adding a little water from time to time as needed to keep a rich, thick (but not gloppy) sauce. Depending on how the sauce is going, you might add in a little tomato paste, most of the time it's not necessary.

At this point you can get creative. Add in a few well-chopped black olives and/or sun dried tomatoes. A few minutes before you're ready to serve, add in some fresh-chopped broccoli or raw (peeled, deveined) shrimp. Try stirring in some romano cheese or some shredded monterey jack (or any other smooth cheese). You should really be tasting the sauce from time to time at this point, and now you can go back and add more of any spice you didn't get enough of in the first go-round. For another (sweeter) variation, cut back on (or cut out) the cayenne, and add a chopped date or two and a few dollops of red wine.

Pour it over some pasta, add some nice chewy-crusty bread and a salad and you're done.

Cissy