Fresh Tomato Sauce

I am so excited about this recipe! 🙂

See, I have this September 2007 issue of Everyday Food by Martha Stewart and I had it with me since, right, 2007. I can’t remember now who gave it to me but I remember vividly that it was supposed to get me started into cooking. And because I wasn’t cooking back then, I didn’t actually care about what’s inside.

Today, I skipped lunch at work and felt really hungry by the time I got home. With some spaghetti in our pantry (we have lots of spaghetti, trust me), I decided to make another pasta dish for dinner. Okay, so I picked up this Sept. 2007 Everyday Food issue, flipped through the pages and voila! A recipe for fresh tomato sauce.

At first, I was skeptical about making it because I honestly don’t feel like it’s gonna be a success but I tried.

And boy, it was sooooo good! Really!

bad photo, sorry

Caveat: I didn’t follow the exact recipe from the magazine. This one’s my adjusted version of it. But give it a try! 🙂

1. 5 lbs plum tomatoes
2. 1/8 cup olive oil
3. 1 small onion, minced
4. 4 cloves garlic, minced
5. 4 tbsp. tomato paste
6. vinegar
7. salt and pepper
8. Thyme/Italian spices
9. sugar

Bring a pot of water to a boil. Set another bowl of ice water. With a paring knife, core the tomatoes and score an X on the bottoms. Put the tomatoes into boiling water and when the skins begin to split after 1-2 minutes, take them out and put them into the bowl of ice water. When they cool, remove the skins and discard. Halve the tomatoes and take away the seeds. Chop the tomatoes.

In a wok or pot, heat oil. Add the garlic and onions. Add in the tomatoes and stir. Add the tomato paste and continue stirring. Add vinegar to adjust the sourness to your liking.  Simmer for 30 minutes or until the mixture is saucy. Season with salt and pepper and add in thyme/Italian spices. Simmer for another 10 minutes.

If you like it sweet, add a tablespoon of sugar once the sauce is finished cooking. You can use it immediately or store in an airtight container. Put it in the refrigerator and pop in the microwave for future use. I’d suggest to use it right away. The recipe will yield about 5 cups of fresh tomato sauce.

I used it right away for my spaghetti and sprinkled grated Parmesan and more Italian herbs on top.

Dammit. So good! 🙂