Prep Time: 1.5 hour
Cook Time: 2.5 hours
Servings: 4+ quarts
Ingredients:
8 lbs Fresh Tomatoes, roasted, peeled and chopped
2 Tbs Olive Oil
2 Tbs Butter
2 med Yellow Onions, diced
1 med Red Onion, diced
10 clove Garlic, minced or pressed
1 C Tomato Paste, to taste*
1 C Red Wine, See Tips **
4 Bay Leaves
¼ C Fresh Oregano, chopped
¼ C Fresh Basil, chopped
¼ C Lavender, chopped
¼ C Fresh Rosemary, chopped
¼ C Fresh Sage, chopped
2 Tbs Fresh Thyme, optional
2 Tbs Fresh Chives, chopped
1 Tbs Ground Cumin
¼ tsp Ground Coriander
2 Yellow Bell Pepper, cut into bite size pieces
1 med Zucchini, cut into bite size pieces
4 Celery Ribs, sliced
3 large Carrots, peeled and sliced
2 Tbs Sea Salt, or to taste
2 tsp Fresh Ground Black Pepper
2 Tbs Fresh Parsley, chopped
Directions:
Preheat oven to 350˚
This is a sweet sauce with an earthy flavor. It does not need any extra sugar. You can spice up to your own desires. Lynda and I like to leave it sweet and contrast the flavor with spicy meat when we serve it. You can also thicken the sauce with tomato paste.
Give the tomatoes a cool bath in the kitchen sink, core and then crowded them onto two cookie sheets, popped them into a 350˚ F oven and bake them for about 45 – 60 minutes. Skins just beginning to split, they were soft and juicy. DO NOT turn the oven off, you will be using it later. After letting them cool a bit, quickly peeled them and pulsed them in the food processor in batches, being careful to leave enough chunks to add texture to my sauce. *** There will be liquid left over in the pan from roasting the tomatoes. You can reserve to use to thin the sauce – my experience is that you will not need it *** Roasting the tomatoes gives this satiny sauce depth of flavor and natural sweetness.
In a large Dutch Oven sauté yellow onion and ½ of the garlic in oil and butter, over medium heat, until softened. Add tomatoes, ½ the garlic, red onion, wine, the herbs and spices, salt and pepper, stirring well to combine.
Transfer full Dutch Oven to the preheated 350˚ oven cook for 2 hours, until tomatoes have broken down and sauce is deep red. Add parsley and simmer for 20 minutes more.
Serve over pasta with freshly grated parmesan cheese. You can also add your browned meat to the sauce, if you desire.
**If you are not going to use the entire recipe for the evening meal, fill 4 quart canning jars, there will be enough for 4 servings left over, then proceed to the canning process.
Tips
Fresh Romas are ideal cooking tomatoes as they’re fleshy, thick-walled and contain fewer seeds. However, any tomato can be used as long as it’s ripe and flavorful.
Choose ripe tomatoes. Leave the green ones to ripen on the windowsill.
If tomatoes are very seedy, squeeze out most of seeds before blending and compensate by adding an extra pound of tomatoes to the pot.
Don’t be afraid to cook with anchovies. The hairy little fish will melt away without a trace and give your sauce amazing flavor.
**Substitute chicken broth or water for the red wine in the recipe.
Use fresh or dried basil and oregano.
If your tomatoes are very acidic, try oven roasting the onions to sweeten the sauce even more. Ground beef or pork, browned and added to the sauce, will also help round out flavors.
Since tomatoes vary in sweetness, it’s important to taste the sauce as it simmers. After about an hour, the sauce will reduce and you can begin to sample it. Add more tomato paste for rich flavor and deeper color, more liquid if sauce is too thick, sugar if too sour or bitter. Add more herbs and spices according to preference.
Simmer sauce for at least two hours, if possible. Make the sauce a day or two in advance and it will be even tastier once flavors marry.
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