Chicken Parmigiana....sort of.....

A quick easy meal I make for my family is chicken parmigiana. Back in the day I use to love it....so, the other day I had to make a quick meal for the family and made them chicken parm...I thought, I'll just have marinara sauce and pasta...but wait a minute...what if I took one of my Gardein Chick'n "fillets" and dip it in a little water, then dip it in Italian bread crumbs...saute it in a little safflower oil...chick'n parm...right? Right! I made it...it was delicious, simple and took less than 10 minutes to make! I also served this with a side of sauteed kale. I've included another marinara sauce recipe from this wonderful vegan book I just got...."The Sublime Restaurant Coockbook" by Nanci Alexander
 I found this book when I was looking for vegan restaurants, I would love to try her restaurants, unfortunately its in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, not exactly Canton, Ohio. Some of the famous vegetarians such as Paul McCartney, Bob Barker, Pamela Anderson, Alic Baldwin, Florence Henderson and Alicia Silverstone all have been there....wouldn't that be too cool if I happen to be in Ft. Lauderdale (its possible) and next to me was sitting Paul McCartney (okay, I can dream)......anyway....this book has some amazing recipes in it.
So, if your like me and can't make it to The Sublime in Lauderdale any time soon, get this book and try one of the scrumptious recipes.

Basic Tomato Sauce
1 1/2 cups safflower oil (she uses extra virgin olive oil)
1/2 cup chopped garlic
2 tablespoons dried basil
2 tablespoons dried oregano
2 tablespoon dried parsley
1- 4 ounce can tomato paste
1 cup red wine
1 can (64 ounces) plum tomatoes, undrained
Salt (sea salt)
Freshly ground black pepper
1 cup chopped fresh basil
This makes 1 gallon, so either cut the recipe in half or make it all and freeze it.
Place 1/2 cup of oil and all of the onions in a large pot. Cook and stir over Medium heat for 5-7 minutes, until the onions are soft. Add the garlic and cook and stir for 2-3 minutes. Add the dried basil, oregano and parsley and cook and stir for 2 minutes until the herbs are lightly toasted. Stir in the tomato paste and cook and stir for 2-3 minutes, until it turns a rusty color.
Stir in the wine and cook for 10 minutes or until the liquid is almost gone. Add the tomatoes and simmer for 30 -35 minutes, stirring occasionally. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
Remove from the heat and stir in the fresh basil leaves and the remaining cup of oil (okay, I just added the basil leaves, I don't think my heart would like the extra oil, if you do add 1 cup of oil, go ahead and switch to extra-virgin olive oil because your not cooking it). Crush the tomatoes with a potato masher until they are chunky. 
ENJOY!