Tomato Sauce- Using fresh tomatoes!

Now that it is spring time, I am so excited to start getting my fresh veggies again! From the May until November I receive farm fresh veggies every week through a CSA Co-op share  The best vegetables I have ever had come from this share.  Last summer they had a deal for 25 pounds of tomatoes, and this sounded great! I had no idea how many tomatoes i was really going to get though, and when it came time to pick them up- there were way more than I thought there were going to be.  I used some in fresh salads, gave some to friends and family, and still had too many left over that I was not going to throw away.  So I decided to make fresh tomato sauce with it, and froze whatever I had!  I always make my own sauce because not only do I think it tastes better, you also know every ingredient you are using without any additives.

Because of the cooler weather we have had in the past few weeks, I used my last frozen container of it, and now I am excited for this seasons share to begin!

The sauce was the easy part, however to make the sauce, we have to do some work to those tomatoes!

First- you have to get the tomatoes.  Once you have them, wash them all.  Even though you do boil and skin them, I am a big believer in always cleaning my produce before doing ANYTHING with it! It is a nice habit to form if anything else.

I forgot to take a picture of the next two steps, but they are simple and do not take much.

Next "score" them with a knife by making an "x" on the tops.  This will help skin them later on.  While doing this, have a big pot of water boiling.

When the water comes to a boil, place the tomatoes in.  Let them boil 30-60 seconds, or until you start to see some skin peel off.

While tomatoes are boiling, get a big bowl of iced water ready to blanch the tomatoes in.

The skin will start to peel off immediately after boiling and blanching.  Just peel back the rest and toss in the garbage. 

I used a knife to help me out.

Now comes the part that I would recommend wearing non-latex gloves for, unless you have a child and they want to help you and get slimy and messy.  

Cut the tomatoes in half and squeeze the juices and seeds out, then rinse.

                                                                

                                                             

                                                              

 You are now ready to chop into chunks and puree it in the food processor (smaller batches at a time).

                                                      

                                                           

Once it is pureed, you are ready to begin the sauce!

Ingredients-

               

            10 Tomatoes-

                              -Wash, score, boil (30-60 seconds), blanch, skin, seed, and food process.
            3 cloves Garlic- minced
            1 Onion diced small
            1/3 cup fresh Basil- chopped finely
            3 Tablespoons Extra Virgin Olive Oil
            1/3 cup Red Wine- Use a wine you would drink rather than a cooking wine.  It will add to the flavor and taste better.  Rule of mine when cooking- if you would not drink it, why would you cook with it?
            2 Tablespoons Tomato Paste

On medium heat in a sauce pan- add the oil and sauté the garlic and onion until softens.  Pour in the pureed tomatoes.  Mix together.  Add all ingredients except the tomato paste.  Bring to a boil.  Stir in tomato paste.  Reduce heat and cover.  Let cook- The longer you let simmer, the thicker and heartier it will become.  1-4 hours.
Whatever is not used, FREEZE in a freezable container for the next time you need sauce!
I love using this sauce with my old time favorite- Spaghetti Squash!

Knowing what is in your food will do your body good.  Eat for your body!