Tomato sauce recipes are ubiquitous. Ask your friends and they will all have their own versions which most cling to like a plum pit. If you grow your own tomatoes like I do, you want to do something really special with your precious harvest.
This year I am growing Italian San Marzano heirloom tomatoes. Originating from the town of San Marzano sul Sarno in southern Italy near Naples, they are a prized Italian treasure. You can usually find the canned version in specialty stores but rarely will you see them in the fresh fruit section of the grocery stores or even at Farmer’s Markets. They are a smaller, more elongated version of an American plum tomato or Roma, with a thick pulp and low acidity which makes them perfect for preserving. As if overnight, about five pounds of them ripened simultaneously in my garden. It was time to can.
How did I decide on what kind of sauce to make with these coveted tomatoes? I consulted my library of traditional Italian cookbooks from Giuliano Buglialli to Ada Boni. The suggestions ranged from complex to simple. From my travels in Italy, I know that the true Italian version of “sugo di pomodoro” or tomato sauce is not to embellish it with too many flavors. The intention is to keep it simple so the tang of the tomato can shine. I liked Bugialli’s technique of simplicity so improvised with my own twist.
Ingredients
Method
- Cut the tomatoes in half lengthwise.
- Place in a deep saucepan.
- Stir in Garlic Olive Oil
- Stir in basil. The basil helps bring out the flavor of the tomato.
- Cook over low-medium heat, stirring occasionally until juice is released and tomatoes break down. This took about 2 hours.
The finished sauce, thick and juicy and delectable.
Most people will pass it through a food mill to eliminate the skins and seeds. Not me. I am ok with seeing and eating the entire fruit.
You can either pour it over hot pasta and sprinkle with parmesan or preserve it by canning like I did. Instead of placing my jars in a water bath and sealing my cans, I opt to freeze my sauce in the jars. It lasts nicely, keeps its vibrant red color and is easy!
“Knowledge is knowing that a tomato is a fruit, wisdom is not putting it in a fruit salad.”
― Miles Kington
Ciao with Love,
Mary
freezing: I have concerns freezing in glass………..do mason jars hold up when freezong and how much free space do you allow at the top? …..another question for my chef cousin……………….. pine nuts are sooooooooooooo expensive. Can they be harvested from the pine cones that drop off the evergreen trees; or do they come from a particular pine tree…………….. if so, how does one harvest? luv ya cuz…../j
Reblogged this on hocuspocus13 and commented:
jinxx♣xoxo
Oh Mary, How perfect! I so wish I could be sitting in your garden with you and savoring this delicious bounty.
Beautiful!
Sent from my iPad
>
Reblogged this on ravenhawks' magazine and commented:
loved this
Thank you so much! I’m glad you enjoyed my story. Your website is super!!
Great Post. I would have had to strained the seeds and skins. Have to satisfy so many diets of friends and family. The canning jars look more like stewed tomatoes served chilled than a sauce. Great color and the flavor I can taste from here. Wow! Bro
Bob Owchinko”Many Faces”602-790-2166
Thanks Bob! I wanted to make it easy and that’s why I didn’t strain the sauce. Plus, I like it pulpy. I’ll post the ways I use in when that creative energy flows. I am open to suggestions!! XO
Thank you Mary Joy!! XO
Carolyn, I wish you were here too! It’s such fun watching the progress of such a tiny plant into an overgrown bush of red bubbles!
Thank you Jinxx! I enjoy your blog too. I appreciate the reblog very much!
Jane, I leave an inch at the top so when the sauce freezes and expands, the top doesn’t bulge. As for the pine nuts, they come encased in a small shell, much like the hardness of a pecan shell, and to hammer each shell open and remove the nut takes a lot of time! That is why they are so expensive. I think they are well worth it for their unique tender flavor. XO
regarding the pine nuts: can they be harvested in the forest by picking up pine cones?
Wonderful surprises come in little packages. Same for sweet little tomatoes .