This year we enjoyed more tomatoes than we have had for a long time if not ever. One of our favorite things to do with tomatoes is make spaghetti sauce. Here is how we do it.
Pick a bunch of tomatoes.
Peel.
Cook some onions.
Add some bell peppers.
Add a bunch of chopped up tomatoes.
Cook for a long time.
Cook longer.
Here is the recipe from "American Country Living, Canning and Preserving"
3 T olive oil
3 Onions, minced
3 garlic cloves, minced2 T fresh basil chopped or 1 T dried basil
3 T minced parsley
25 to 30 tomatoes
2 t salt
1 1/2 t sugar
1 T plus 1 t beef bouillon
Add oil to a 6 quart pot.
Mince onions and garlic in food processor and saute' in oil until transparent.
Add basil and parsley.
Peel tomatoes (dip in boiling water 15 seconds and peel) and process until like juice.
Add to pot with onions and herbs.
Add the rest of the ingredients and blend well.
Cook on low heat for 1 1/2 hours, stirring often.
When sauce is done, ladle into hot jars to within 1/2 inch of top of jar.
Clean rims and seal.
Process for 45 minutes in a water bath canner.
We actually use this recipe for a start but we have learned in is very forgiving if you want to be creative. We like peppers so we add bell peppers. We chop up the tomatoes instead of using the food processor. Less of a mess and they cook down anyway. One batch we didn't have enough fresh onions so we used dehydrated onions from our food storage. They worked great.
We have learned that if the sauce is thinner than you like, either cook it longer or add a can or two of tomato paste or both.
We are ready for all the spaghetti or pizza or lasagna or whatever else needs sauce that we want to eat this winter. Sooo Good!
