Page 71 - Blues Festival Guide Magazine 2022

4. Add the chopped onion and sauté until the onion is Murphy started The Shaun Murphy Band, which has led to three
glossy and bacon is well-cooked. (Adding the remaining GRAMMY nominations and winning Blues Blast Magazine’s
ingredients will stop the cooking process of the bacon, Best Female Blues Vocalist of the Year and Best Contemporary
so cook until it’s the way you like it). Blues Album of the Year. She has also been honored with two
5. Add the dried red peppers to taste, and sauté for 20 Blues Music Award nominations for the Koko Taylor Award and
seconds, stirring. (Don’t let the peppers burn, or they will Contemporary Blues Female Artist.
become bitter).
6. Add the dry white wine and sauté until it is reduced by To connect with Shaun Murphy, visit:
at least half. Shaunmurphyband.com
7. Chop the tomatoes (taking off their little “hats” first, Facebook.com/shaunmurphyband
the stem end and any other anomalies) and add to the Instagram.com/shaunmurphyband
bacon mixture, along with any juice that’s in the can. Twitter.com/ShaunMurphyBand
(That’s right, you’re NOT draining any grease from this,
it all goes to the “flavor factor.”)
8. Cook the sauce for about 30 to 40 minutes, stirring
occasionally, until it becomes thickened. (If the tomatoes
are too large, you can further mash them with a handheld
potato masher while they’re in the skillet).
9. When the sauce is about 15 minutes from being done
and the pasta water has come to a rolling boil, add
the salt to the water. (Don’t be afraid to add this much
salt, as most of it will be left behind in the water, and
it’s the only salt added to the recipe). My rule of thumb
is to start cooking the pasta when a wooden spoon is
dragged across the sauce and leaves a quick trail that
then disappears.
10. Add the pasta, stirring until it has gone soft enough
that it is completely in the water. (Otherwise, it will stick
together. Note: oiling the water isn’t the best way to
keep it from sticking). I also stir it from time to time as it
cooks. Follow the package directions for cooking time,
which varies from pasta to pasta. I like to take out about
a cup of pasta water right before draining the pasta, to
add to the sauce if it’s gotten too thick; it has the taste of
the pasta!
11. Drain quickly when done, and add the pasta to the
sauce, tossing well to coat. Sprinkle the top with the
minced parsley and your grated cheese.
12. Serve immediately! (As they say, “Pasta waits for no
man.”)
Shaun Murphy. Photo by Gary Eckhart
Yield: 3-4 Servings

*San Marzano tomatoes are grown in – where else? –
San Marzano, Italy. They’re a bit more expensive, but well
worth it in the finished product. You can find these from a
number of companies, usually early in the year. The thing
about these kinds of tomatoes is that they’re left on the vine to
ripen before they’re picked, so they should be very ripe and
very red in appearance. Make your judgment of brands with
that in mind, one of my favorites is Cento brand.

Shaun Murphy’s musical influence has spanned from Broadway
to Motown, Meat Loaf, Eric Clapton, Bob Seger, Bruce Hornsby,
and over 15 years as the only female and lead singer of one
of America’s most treasured bands, Little Feat. After Little Feat,

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