Recipe: Nina’s Home-Made Tomato Sauce

 HOME MADE TOMATO SAUCE

 

• 5 Lbs Italian Plum tomatoes
• 1 large sliced onion
• ½ cup fresh basil, chopped
• ¼ cup fresh Italian flat parsley, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic- chopped or mashed
• Salt to taste
• Pepper to taste
• ½ cup water

 

1. Wash tomatoes, cut in half, remove any blemishes, and place in large pot with sliced onion and the water.
2. Cover and bring to a slow boil. Stir to keep tomatoes from sticking to bottom of the pot. 
3. When tomatoes are soft remove from stove, and let cool a bit.
4. Place ladles full of tomatoes through a food mill and process over another large pot. Use the smallest holes on the food mill- this will remove the seeds and the skin.
5. After all the tomatoes have been strained, put back on stove and simmer to a slow boil, uncovered.
6. Let sauce simmer on low for about a half hour.
7. Add chopped parsley, basil, garlic, salt and pepper.
8. Simmer slowly without a cover for another hour.
9. Taste it, if tart, add a pinch of sugar.
10. Simmer sauce until it is fairly thick, stirring often, about another hour or so. The lower and slower you simmer it the better the taste and the thicker it gets. I have let sauce simmer 3 or 4 hours. 

You can add oregano if you want- fresh is best.

When sauce is done you can put it aside and use on pasta later, or after it cools you can freeze it.

I have used cherry tomatoes in my sauce, and heirloom, or yellow tomatoes also, just use a little less water.