From Lisa Woodward, Weaver Street Market Demo Coordinator. This is a recipe from an old friend of mine who was born and raised in Rome. About 16 years ago we were discussing food and cooking and I mentioned my struggle to make a good pasta sauce. She asked what I put into my sauce, and I began to ramble on about my LONG list of ingredients. She smiled, shook her head, and proceeded to give me the best lesson I ever learned about cooking. Simple is better–fresh is imperative and never muddy the flavors with too many ingredients. Time is what makes this sauce so good. It is slowly cooked to thick, reddish-brown perfection. Serve it on or in…well…everything.
Ingredients:
- 1/3 c. good extra virgin olive oil
- 1 very large or two medium onions, chopped
- 8 to 10 cups peeled ripe Heirloom, Roma or meaty Slicer tomatoes – cut into wedges
- 2 tsps. sugar
- 2 to 3 Tbsp. fresh basil, finely chopped
- 2 Tbsp. fresh oregano, finely chopped
- salt and pepper to taste
Directions:
1) Heat oil in a large, heavy-bottomed saute pan over medium heat.
2) When oil is shimmering add onion to pan and saute until translucent.
3) Add tomatoes and sugar to the pan and stir.
5) Reduce heat to medium-low and cook, uncovered, stirring occassionally until thickened and reduced. This can easily take several hours
depending upon how much juice the tomatoes have. But don’t try to shortcut by draining the tomatoes–you WANT it to have time to cook down.
6) Remove sauce from heat and stir in basil, oregano, and salt and pepper to taste. Serve over pasta, use in casseroles, or top meats and veggies.