If you've been following my blog for awhile, you probably know that I'm a gardener. Every year I plant an array of vegetables, and every year I make homemade tomato sauce. I dry my own basil and oregano and I even grow the onions. Anyway, it's been a crazy summer and August crept up on me. I found myself with a counter covered in plum tomatoes. How many? Well, I didn't count them but after I'd blanched, skinned, cored, and diced them it made 48 cups.
So last night I was up until midnight processing 12 quarts of prepared sauce. I asked myself, "Self, why do you do this? Surely, there is an easier way. A jar of sauce, after all, is like $2.99." I didn't have any answers. It's a huge time suck. But to make myself feel better about the time I spent weeding, watering, herb-drying, picking, peeling, coring, chopping, measuring, stirring, and processing (deep breath) so that my family could have fresh, homemade, BPA free, tomato sauce, I'm posting my recipe here so that you too can ponder why I do it every year.
Ching's Tomato Sauce
1-4 glass red wine
12 cups roma tomatoes, peeled,cored,and chopped
3 medium onions, chopped
4 cloves garlic, minced
3 small cans tomato paste
3 tablespoons brown sugar
1 tablespoon dried oregano
1 tablespoon salt
1 tablespoon dried basil
1 teaspoon dried black pepper
Directions:
Drink wine. Mix everything else together in the biggest pot you own, the one you never use because it takes up too much room in the dishwasher, and simmer for an hour. Scoop it into canning jars and process in a boiling water bath for 40 minutes. Require family to do some major sucking up each and every time you use prepared sauce.
Enjoy knowing you are one step closer to domestic goddess.
