Cooking with old friends for family
Two of life’s greatest comforts – Hugs and Good food.
My husband walked into the kitchen while I was at the stove and asked, “ Wha’ch doing?”
“Making tomato sauce,” was my response.
“That’s a lot of work. Why bother when that stuff from a jar is okay?”
He’s right. Making tomato sauce from scratch takes time and is work but, to me, it’s like visiting family and friends.
Tomato sauce over pasta with a tossed salad and hot garlic bread was the first meal I made for Fred. I use a recipe from the Betty Crocker cookbook my Aunt gave me back in the 1960s.
My mother’s sieve has made everything from applesauce for my babies to my tomato sauce smooth and loved.
I chop the onions for my tomato sauce with a knife used by Fred’s mother (Jane), the grip worn satin smooth over the years. It replaced a massive butcher’s knife which was one of the first kitchen utensils I bought fresh out of high school.
I stir my tomato sauce with the wooden spoon belonged to my first husband’s mother (Resi). It has a burn across the back where she laid it down on a hot electric burner the day the doctor told her she might have skin cancer (false alarm I am happy to report).
And the magic all comes together in my “Dutch oven” which is actually an ancient alumiinum pot. I can’t count the number of meals made in that pot but it has always given me a tomato sauce that makes this gal proud.
Making tomato sauce from scratch does require some work but it’s easy work when surrounded by family and old friends.
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Here’s my recipe for Tomato Sauce from the above mention cookbook (option – toss in meatballs, an assortment of sauteed vegetable, or cooked ground meat – de-glaze the fry pan with a splash of red wine and add to the sauce for another dimension to the sauce )
½ cup chopped onions
1 clove garlic, minced
3 Tbsp olive oil
2 cans (1lb 4oz each) tomatoes, rubbed through sieve (omitting the sieve and you get a chunky sauce for a change in texture)
1 can (8oz) tomato sauce
1 can (6oz) tomato paste
1 cup water
1 tsp. dried Italian seasonings or basil
2 Tbsp minced parsley
2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
healthy pinch of sugar
Saute onions and garlic until tender in oil. Add remaining ingredients and simmer over low heat 1 hour. Good that day and even better the next day.
