Tomato & basil sauce
This is my everyday tomato sauce that I make regularly to go with pasta or use on homemade pizzas. Tt’s is good solid classic that is great vfm costing approx £3.40 for 8-10 portions. I usually make a big pan of it so I can freeze half and use the rest in various ways throughout the week. It’s a great way to get ahead in the kitchen and reduce the time you spend cooking after a busy day at work.
Tomato sauce is simple to make and super versatile as you can add lots of different ingredients to switch it up to make a whole new meal. These are a few of my favourite ways to serve it:
go classic with grated parmesan or crumbled feta
stir in some spinach at the last minute and top with feta
roast aubergine slices with olive oil and sea salt (approx 35 minutes on 180ºc, turn half way) add to the sauce and cook for 5 mins, feta works really well here.
blacken a red pepper under the grill, peel, chop, add to the sauce and cook for 5 mins, serve with parmesan
add a pinch of chilli for arrabbiata
Fry some chopped (veggie or meat - but take out of the casing) sausage or meatballs and load with any kind of cheese (cheddar for kids obviously)
stir in a dollop of mascarpone cheese
And for the meat eaters - crispy bacon is always a winner (especially with mascarpone) or my kids also absolutely love chicken parmigiana on top.
Ingredients
Serves 8-10
3 onions, chopped
1 red pepper, chopped
4 large garlic cloves, grated
4 x 400g tinned tomatoes
1 handful fresh basil, stalks chopped, leaves torn and set aside
1/2 tbsp balsamic
1 tsp sea salt
Method
Heat 2 tbsp olive oil in a large deep pan and then add the onions. Fry gently for about 10 minutes until softened and then add the red pepper and cook for a further 15 minutes on low.
Next add the garlic, stir and cook for 2-3 minutes before pouring in the chopped tomatoes and adding the basil stalks. Heat through and then reduce to a gentle simmer for 30 minutes.
Add the balsamic vinegar simmer for a further 5 minutes and then add the basil leaves.
Use a hand blender to blitz the sauce.
Tip
Ideally you need a hand blender for this particular recipe, but if you don’t have one or would prefer a chunky sauce then chop the onions and basil stalks finely and the pepper whatever size you prefer. Use a fork or potato masher to break up the tomatoes at the end.