Simple Tomato Sauce
Cuisine: Italian
Author: Domenica Marchetti copyright © 2013
Even though I preserve batches of tomato sauce to use through winter, I still rely on sauce made from good canned tomatoes from time to time. Using excellent-quality canned tomatoes and good olive oil is important to the integrity of this simple, everyday sauce. Look for canned diced tomatoes packed in their natural juice rather than in heavy, pasty purée.
Ingredients
  • 2 garlic cloves, lightly crushed
  • ¼ cup/60 ml extra-virgin olive oil
  • two 28-oz/800-g cans diced tomatoes, with their juice
  • fine sea salt
  • 5 large fresh basil leaves, shredded or torn
Instructions
  1. Warm the garlic in the olive oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Use a wooden spoon to press down on the garlic to release its flavor. Cook for about 2 minutes, or until the garlic begins to sizzle. Don’t let it brown. Carefully pour in the tomatoes and their juice (the oil will spatter) and stir to coat with the oil. Season with 1 tsp salt and raise the heat to medium-high. Bring the sauce to a simmer, reduce the heat to medium-low, and simmer gently, stirring from time to time, for 30 to 35 minutes, or until the sauce has thickened and the oil is pooling on the surface.
  2. Remove from the heat and stir in the basil. Taste and add more salt if you like. If not using immediately, transfer the sauce to a container with a tight-fitting lid and refrigerate for up to 3 days or freeze for up to 3 months.
Recipe by Simple Italy at https://www.simpleitaly.com/the-glorious-vegetables-of-italy/