4 tablespoons olive oil 1 cup Veggie Box fennel, finely chopped 1/2 Veggie Box onion, finely chopped Veggie Box eggplant, cubed 1 garlic clove, chopped (from last week!) Salt to taste 2 tablespoons tomato paste 1 quart tomato sauce seeded, crushed tomatoes or chopped fresh tomatoes Parmesan, pecorino or mizythra cheese to garnish 1/4 cup red wine, like Merlo

Heat the olive oil over medium heat in a wide, deep pan or a large pot. When the oil is hot, add the fennel, eggplant, and onion and sweat them slowly until they are very soft, about 10 minutes. Sprinkle
some salt over everything while they are cooking. Stir occasionally. Add the garlic and cook for another minute or two. Then add in the wine and let it cook down, reducing by at least half. Stir in the tomato paste and cook this for another few minutes. Kick the heat up to medium high and add the tomatoes and mix well. Taste for salt and add some if needed. Let this simmer gently for 20 minutes. Top with cheese and enjoy! Optional Step: The following is optional, but makes a better sauce for long pasta like spaghetti. Pour the sauce into a blender or food processor and puree. If you are going to serve this sauce with short pasta, like penne or bowties, you can skip this step.