Tomato Sauce

[janinedog]

This is a yummy and pretty easy recipe for making tomato sauce. It's much better than jarred sauces! I put it on pasta, but I suppose you could use it for anything else that needs tomato sauce as well. The recipe comes from my mom. :)

Also, if anyone has any tips for how to minimize splatter from sauce while it's cooking, it'd be appreciated! That's the most annoying part about making this. ;)


Ingredients:
* 1 clove garlic
* one half of a white onion
* ~30 oz can of whole tomatoes
* ~30 oz can of tomato puree
* ~6 oz can of tomato paste
* 4-6 fresh basil leaves (rinsed)
* 1 dried bay leaf
* 1 carrot (peeled and cut in half)
* 3/4 teaspoon sugar
* shredded mozzarella cheese (optional)
* extra virgin olive oil
* salt and pepper

Materials:
* large pot with lid (the sauce will splatter a lot!)
* large spoon (for mixing)
* knife
* blender
* can opener
* teaspoon

Recipe:
1. Chop up the garlic and half onion into small pieces.
2. Heat up a little extra virgin olive oil in the pot (medium heat).
3. Add the garlic and onion, stir until they're slightly soft.
4. Meanwhile, pour the can of whole tomatoes into the blender and blend it completely.
5. Pour in the blended whole tomatoes and the can of tomato puree; stir.
6. Add the can of tomato paste, basil leaves, bay leaf, sugar, a little pepper, and some salt; stir.
7. Add the two halves of the carrot; stir.
8. Turn it to medium-low heat and cover the pot slightly so that you don't get sauce all over the place; let sit for half an hour, stirring occasionally.
9. Take out the bay leaf and carrots.
10. (Optional) Add some shredded mozzarella cheese; stir.
11. Serve the sauce with pasta or something else of your choice!

This will make enough sauce for many bowls of pasta...at least 6-8 I'd say, though it depends how much you like to use. :) You can store leftovers in the fridge or freezer.

Also, in case you're wondering, the purpose of the carrot is to absorb some of the acid in the sauce. It's useful for people prone to heartburn; it doesn't change the taste (at least not that I can tell).

Comments

[zarhooie]

Ooooh, that sounds GOOD! *makes notes to self to make this sometime*

My mom has a couple of these mesh lid things, kind of like this

[sarisia]

Wouldn't stirring consistently, instead of occasionally, minimize the splatter?

[janinedog]

Yes...but I'm definitely not the type of person who wants to stir for half an hour straight. :)

[sarisia]

Aha, of course. XD