Homemade Roasted Tomato Sauce

Everyday I am picking handfuls of tomatoes from my garden. I have been quite busy lately, so I wanted to find a way to preserve all of these tomatoes and not let them go to waste. This, I am sure, is the first in a long line of tomato dishes. I adapted this recipe for Homemade Roasted Tomato Sauce from Cuisine at Home magazine. The have a collection of Pasta recipes available. I really love this magazine, nearly every recipe in every issue looks delicious.


Yield: About 3 1/2 cups

-8 cups fresh tomatoes, quartered (I used a mixture from my garden of cherry, Roma, and beefsteak tomatoes)
-1 cup onion, chopped
-4 garlic cloves, smashed
-1/3 cup olive oil
-1 teaspoon sugar
-1 teaspoon kosher salt
-1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
-1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
-2 Tablespoons fresh basil, thinly sliced
-1 Tablespoon fresh oregano, chopped
-1/2 Tablespoon Italian seasoning


-Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit
-Combine all ingredients (except the basil, oregano, and Italian seasoning) in a large baking dish. Roast 45 minutes, mix in the fresh herbs, then pulse in a food processor to desired consistency. (Using a slotted spoon, I transferred the roasted tomato/onion/garlic mixture to a bowl with high sides, added the herbs, and blended using my immersion blender.)
-Adjust the seasoning with salt and pepper. (I found that I didn't need any other seasoning, it was perfect the way it was)




Notes: This is really good. The roasting of the tomatoes really brings out their natural flavor. I used less olive oil than the recipe originally called for (1/2 cup). It just seemed like too much to me. The tomatoes I used generated a large amount of juice. I didn't want to blend the mixture like that because I was afraid that it would be too runny. Therefore, I used a slotted spoon and transferred the mixture to a bowl in order to eliminate most of that juice. The consistency was just right for me this way. I will be making this recipe again. I want to be able to freeze some of this sauce so I will be able to enjoy it all winter long.