Today's post is brought to you by guest blogger, Monty Jain. His imagination and talent in the kitchen has wowed me and so I asked him to share some of his recipes from time to time.
Why doesn't tomato sauce taste like tomatoes? In many sauces the poor defenseless tomatoes are reduced to filler while other overbearing veggies/seasonings come waltzing and take over all the taste. Well I say 'No More'! As a defender of good taste and healthy choices I'm taking the sauce back!
Tomato Sauce
3-4 lbs tomatoes (Roma or Vine Tomatoes, ideally local)
3 Tbsp. Olive Oil (optional)
1 tsp sea salt (or more to taste)
3-4 cloves of fresh garlic made into paste
1/4 cup basil leaves (whole)
Tomatoes have flavor in the flesh of the fruit...the seed and skin don't have flavor. When making this sauce it is important to make sure that non-flavor fillers stay out. Also pick a time when you can sit and relax for 2-3 hours. A rainy Sunday afternoon is perfect... especially if a classic movie is on TV in the background.
First blanch the tomatoes by bringing 3 litres of salted water to boil. Lightly cut an 'x' in the skin of the tomatoe, then place then into the water for a quick 2-3 minute boil, or just until the skin starts peeling back. Pull them out and quickly into a bowl of ice water. This will get them to stop cooking and hasten the peeling process.
Peel & chop the tomatoes in quaters, deseed and remove the hard core. Don't worry the hard work is pretty much done. Now drop all the ingredients into a large pot at meduim low and cover. Next, grab a drink sit back and chill with that movie. During commercials check the pot (should take about 75-90 minutes) and stir occasionally. Do not scrape down the sides... its just nasty parts boiling off... let it go man.... seriously.
Now just before the sauce is done chuck in the basil and your finished! Bring over some friends boil up some pasta and enjoy the purest sauce you'll ever have.
