Simple Tomato Sauce
You know at those really good Italian restaurants when the server tells you the pizza sauce is basically just stewed tomatoes?! I had always wondered what it was they were doing to these ‘stewed tomatoes’ to make them taste so dang good! Thanks to California’s exceptional tomato season and a little experimentation of my own, I’ve come up with an easy recipe for a fresh tomato sauce that you can make during tomato season and freeze the leftovers for the winter! My favorite tomatoes to use for pasta sauces are early girl (or dry farmed) tomatoes, but any fresh tomato will work!
Simple Tomato Sauce
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 2-3 large cloves garlic (roughly chopped)
- 1 lb tomatoes (I recommend early girl, but anything fresh or in season will do)
- 1 tsp lemon juice
- Salt to taste
Preheat the oven to 375°F.
Heat olive oul in a large oven-safe pot over medium heat. I usually use a dutch oven.
Saute garlic for 1-2 minutes until fragrant, but not browned.
Stir in the tomatoes with their juices, cover the pot, and place in the oven for 60-90 minutes. 90 minutes will give you a more roasted flavor, but if you're in a rush 60 will work fine.
Remove the pot from the oven and let it cool uncovered for at least 10 minutes.
Transfer the contents of the pot to the blender (or use an immersion blender) and puree the mixture.
Return the mixture to the pot and continue to stir over medium heat.
Add lemon juice and salt to taste. You may prefer a little more lemon – I usually add this to taste as well. It brightens the sauce.
I usually make this recipe with 5lbs of tomatoes (5X the recipe).
I usually make a few batches while tomatoes are in season and freeze a bunch of sauce for the winter.
