Anonymous wrote:DH's family is from Italy (mom born there too).

Ex's family is from Sisley

NO ONIONS (yuck!)
NO SUGAR
NO OREGANO

Just:

- Garlic - 2 or 3 cloves chopped, fried 2 minutes
- Tomato Paste (Cento!) - 1/3 can only - fry in same pan for 2 minutes
- Canned Whole Tomatoes - chopped up with the juice (Furmanos - brand is key here - or, go to an Italian grocery and use Sclafani's Crushed Tomatoes instead and scrap the tomato paste too)
- Basil (dry) - lots of it - brand is key - use Trader Joes

Simmer for 20 minutes covered and voila!

I forgot to add that you can use the San Marzano type of canned tomatoes instead if you like.

DH's family is from Italy (mom born there too).

Ex's family is from Sisley

NO ONIONS (yuck!)
NO SUGAR
NO OREGANO

Just:

- Garlic - 2 or 3 cloves chopped, fried 2 minutes
- Tomato Paste (Cento!) - 1/3 can only - fry in same pan for 2 minutes
- Canned Whole Tomatoes - chopped up with the juice (Furmanos - brand is key here - or, go to an Italian grocery and use Sclafani's Crushed Tomatoes instead and scrap the tomato paste too)
- Basil (dry) - lots of it - brand is key - use Trader Joes

Simmer for 20 minutes covered and voila!

Saute diced unions & 1-2 tlsp garlic
Drain extra liquid from can of diced tomatoes and add to pan
Add in salt, pepper, and dried basil (or fresh if you have it)
Simmer until most of the liquid is evaporated

Run the whole thin through the food processor for 5 seconds

(optional: I add in chives and small amounts of random greens if we've got extra in the fridge)

My family really likes a Giada marinara recipe available on foodnetwork.com. The gist of the recipe that that you gently fry some garlic, an onion, two celery stalk , and two carrots in a good amount of olive oil for about 10 minutes until they soften (don't blacken anything, or the sauce will taste burnt). Add two large cans (32 oz) of chopped stewed tomatoes (use San Marzano if you want a stronger tomato taste) and simmer at super low heat for 2 hours until the sauce reduces by half. Blend/puree and add butter to smooth the taste if it is too harsh and add a lot of finely chopped parsley and salt to taste. The carrots/onions add sweetness and the celery adds saltiness.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:2 cups of San Marzano plum italian tomatoes
1/2 stick of butter
1 sweet yellow onion halved.

Heat, then simmer for 45 minutes; remove onion halves. Enjoy!

God, I love this stuff, but I only use 3-5 T butter, depending how I feel. Oh, and I eat it as soup...

I'm obsessed with this sauce. We use it as a pizza sauce too. Delicious. I blend mine with the immersion blender so it's smooth. And sometimes I blend up one or two petals of the cooked onion. Oh, and don't forget the salt.

I'm the pp who posted the vegetarian recipe (if you can call it that) using Pomi and I don't let the sauce cook long at all. I like a fresher taste, so I do just what you said.

If I use fresh tomatoes don't cook the sauce at all: I just use chunks of tomatoes, olive oil, garlic and basil. Maybe I throw in some cooked marinated white beans. Throw it in a bowl with whole wheat pasta and top it with Parmesan and serve warm or at room temp. Couldn't be easier.

I totally agree! This is not a traditional red sauce, but it is the easiest and tastiest of them all (in the summer when the tomatoes are fresh). A pint of cherry or grape tomatoes, some olive oil, chopped fresh garlic and basil, give it a 15-20 second whirl in the food processor, thoss it in your pasta with maybe a bit more oil (and, if you like, some fresh ground pepper), and you're done. Also makes a great homemade pizza sauce.

Anonymous wrote:I heard on the Splendid Table recently that if your sauce is vegetarian, you really don't want to cook it that long. 30-45 minutes, tops, but less is fine--just enough to break down your tomatoes and mix the flavors. More than 45 minutes, and it goes downhill--the sugars and sweetness fade and the tomatoes break down further than you want.

That "simmer for hours" thing is only for meat sauces, where you're breaking down and distributing the meat proteins. You're making a very different kind of sauce.

Makes sense to me.

I'm the pp who posted the vegetarian recipe (if you can call it that) using Pomi and I don't let the sauce cook long at all. I like a fresher taste, so I do just what you said.

If I use fresh tomatoes don't cook the sauce at all: I just use chunks of tomatoes, olive oil, garlic and basil. Maybe I throw in some cooked marinated white beans. Throw it in a bowl with whole wheat pasta and top it with Parmesan and serve warm or at room temp. Couldn't be easier.

Anonymous wrote:2 cups of San Marzano plum italian tomatoes
1/2 stick of butter
1 sweet yellow onion halved.

Heat, then simmer for 45 minutes; remove onion halves. Enjoy!

God, I love this stuff, but I only use 3-5 T butter, depending how I feel. Oh, and I eat it as soup...

i rarely bother making tomato sauce. i add the cooked pasta to a large saute pan after cooking whatever veggies and/or protein in olive oil and garlic. add some of the pasta cooking water and parmesan and stir. done.

I heard on the Splendid Table recently that if your sauce is vegetarian, you really don't want to cook it that long. 30-45 minutes, tops, but less is fine--just enough to break down your tomatoes and mix the flavors. More than 45 minutes, and it goes downhill--the sugars and sweetness fade and the tomatoes break down further than you want.

That "simmer for hours" thing is only for meat sauces, where you're breaking down and distributing the meat proteins. You're making a very different kind of sauce.

Makes sense to me.

Something easy and along the lines of 09:00's suggestion...dice ripe tomatoes, add olive oil, salt and pepper to taste, juice of a lemon, let sit to get yummy and juicy, toss with hot cooked drained thin spaghetti. Add slivered basil if you want to spend an extra 10 seconds preparing it. Yum.

OP here - thanks everyone! These are great. I'm going to to make the first one this weekend. Thanks!

Anonymous wrote:Sauté minced garlic, onion and carrot in olive oil.
Add mushrooms if you like them and cook down.
Add 1 TBS tomato paste and brown it a bit.
Add Pomi chopped tomatoes and let it cook down.
Add fresh basil and oregano.
Add pasta to sauté pan and toss.
Serve with freshly grated Parmesan.

I agree with this because Pomi is really fabulous in homemade sauce.

I don't use mushrooms, but I do like some onion and garlic - you can do that to taste. I also like red pepper flakes for a little kick.

I don't eat pork either and have never made sauce with pork, it tastes so light this way.

In the summer, I use fresh tomatoes and either do a crudo (raw) sauce (just put diced grape tomatoes over warm pasta and toss) or I sautee (or even roast) fresh small tomatoes and garlic until the tomatoes give off a lot of liquid and serve it that way. THATS my favorite (because I love summer tomatoes).