Saucy Tomato

The snow has dropped here in northern Michigan. I didn’t have a large garden this year, but I did have plenty of tomatoes. I had to take them down quickly to save them from the destructive frost. A simple idea to keep you from wasting all those beautiful tomatoes is to make a scratch pasta sauce. This is something I learned to make back in culinary school. The recipe is simple, it does take a few hours, but it is all about developing flavors.

A simple sauce can impress any guest. It makes your house smell amazing. People will think this recipe took all day. The great thing about a scratch sauce is you can play add secret ingredient or even a special family trick. The flavors can be done however you chose.

I say you can use any types of tomatoes; some chefs say to use roma tomatoes. These have the most meat and acidic flavor. This allows for rich body and durability to cook for long periods of time.

 

First thing first, make sure to gather all your ingredients. Slice and dice as need for how you like your sauce. Be sure to cut a plus sign in the top of your tomato so it can release the skin easily during peeling.

To start you are going to do something called blanching. It is a process that serves many purposes. We are using it for the loosening the skin of the tomatoes for peeling.

You must have a pot of boiling water and container of water mixed with some ice (ice bath).

The tomatoes get boiled in the water for 30 sec to 2 minutes depending one the size of the tomatoes. I only had to do mine for 45 seconds because they were small. Look for wrinkly skin, take them out of the boiling water and cool in the ice bath.

Once cooled peel the tomatoes with a light squeeze. The skin will come right off, and the seeds will pop out of the center.

Take all your ingredients, the softened peeled tomatoes, cooking oil, start cooking. Place some oil into a pan, heat to sauté. Add all ingredients heat until a light boil. At this point add ¼ cup stock, bring to a simmer.

Let the mix simmer for up to two hours. Stir in stock as needed, a little at a time, to avoid scalding. You will see the tomatoes darken slightly as they develop. After the two hours you can remove from heat and use right away. Sometimes I will cool the sauce completely, blend it, use it as a base for other sauce. There are so many uses for this the opportunities are endless. 

Scratch Tomato Sauce

Roma Tomatoes           20 small

( Blanched, peeled, seeded)

Garlic, minced              3 Tablespoons

Fresh herbs                   2 Tablespoons

Salt & Pepper               To Taste

Vegetable stock             2 cups, for simmering

1. Add all ingredients heat to a simmer.
2. Pour in stock 1/4 cup at a time to avoid scalding
3. Let simmer for two hours

Remove from heat: Ready to use, cool for following recipes, store airtight container 4 days or freeze.

Printable Sauce Recipe

Finished Sauce 

Sweet and Zingy BBQ variations

Vinegar                         2 Tablespoons

Brown sugar                1/4 Cup

Paprika                          1 Tablespoon

Sauce Recipe, blended

• Add all ingredients to sauce pan. Simmer until sugar has dissolved. Blend when finished. Use as desired

Lasagna Sauce

Fresh herbs                   1/4 cup mixed

Red wine                      1/4 cup

Sauce Recipe

• Mix ingredients and layer in with lasagna recipe

Thick Vegetarian Sauce 

Fresh vegetables           1/2 cup mixed

Vegetable puree              1 cup
Sauce Recipe

• Heat sauce and puree to a simmer. Stir in fresh vegetables and allow to simmer 30 minutes. Use as desired.

Printable Additional Sauces