Mushroom Sugo

Place dry mushrooms to soak in a bowl with 2 cups of warm water. Set aside.

Heat olive oil in a medium, thick-bottomed pot (4 or 5 quart) over medium heat. Add the minced onions and stir to coat with the olive oil. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the onions turn a deep golden color, about 30 to 40 minutes. Adjust the heat lower if necessary to keep the onions from drying out.

Add the minced carrots and cook for 5-6 more minutes. Add the celery and cook until soft, about 10 more minutes. Add the garlic, parsley, rosemary, thyme and marjoram. Cook for 4-5 minutes more.

Remove the porcini from the soaking liquid, reserving the liquid. (The easiest way to do this we found is to pour the porcini and soaking liquid through a coffee filter, into a bowl or measuring cup. This helps remove any grit that may be lingering in the soaking liquid.) Finely chop the mushrooms and add to the vegetables in the pot.

Push the vegetables to one side of the pot and increase the heat to high. Add the 1/2 cup of red wine to the side of the pot without the vegetables and cook on high heat for 2-3 minutes.

Add the tomato sauce, 1 1/2 cups of the mushroom soaking liquid, the bouillon cube (break it up with your fingers as you add it), and the bay leaf to the pot. Bring to a simmer and reduce the heat to low. Add ground black pepper to taste. Cover the pot and simmer, stirring occasionally, for 1 1/2 hours. Discard the bay leaf.

Serve over polenta or toss with ravioli or other pasta.