Tomato Basil Sauce

From Wining & Dining, with John Grisanti, John Grisanti, Wimmer Brothers, 1984. ISBN 0-939114-88-7.

Yes, everyone has their own tomato sauce recipe that they swear by. This isn't to replace that -- it's just a real quick (15 minutes), tasty sauce.

Serves 4.

Ingredients

1/4 cup oil (pref. olive)
2 medium onions, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
2 lb ripe tomatoes, peeled, seeded and chopped, or 1 28-ounce can tomatoes, undrained, seeded & chopped
1/4 cup chopped fresh basil or 1T crumbled, dried basil
1/2 t crumbled, dried oregano
1/2 t sugar
Salt & pepper to taste
(opt) 3-ounces prosciutto, chopped pancetta or unsmoked ham
(opt) 1T chopped hot chillies, or 1/2 t crushed red pepper (or 2 crushed-
up dried red chillies)

Directions

Heat oil in a large, heavy skillet over medium heat. If doing the prosciutto/pancetta/ ham, cook until golden (2-3 minutes) and remove with a slotted spoon. Saute onions and chillies until the onions are soft and transparent, about 10 minutes. Add garlic and saute a minute or two, then stir in tomatoes and herbs. Raise heat and bring mixture to a boil. Cook about 5 minutes, until slightly reduced. Add sugar and salt and pepper to taste. Add prosciutto/pancetta/ham just before tossing sauce and pasta.

Comments

We've used prosciutto, cooked salami (the lunchmeat kind), and smoked salami (the kind that people eat like hot dogs). The smoked salami was overwhelming. The other two were great. It's fine without meat too.

Jim Plank

Recipe Home Page