Roasted Tomato Sauce

The tomato glut is in full force.  That means it is time to make tomato sauce, which is one of my favorite things from the garden.  I love roasted tomato sauce- it is delicious and it is very easy to make.  There is very little chopping or stirring, but you do need a food mill.

A batch of sauce makes about a pint and takes 4 pounds of tomatoes (I used a mix of Roma VF, Plum Regal, San Marzano and Amish Paste), a couple of sweet bell peppers, a small head of garlic, a few small onions, oregano and olive oil.

Everything gets roughly chopped except for the garlic, which is peeled and put in whole.  It all goes into a 9 x 13 inch pan.

Roast at 450°F for 1 1/2 to 2 hours, stirring every thirty minutes.  The tomatoes will get blackened and it will not look very pretty when it comes out of the oven.

Let it cool and run through a food mill.  I got my Victorio food strainer last year and it has been a wonderful addition to my kitchen and has made tomato season much easier and quicker to deal with.  The roasted ingredients go into the top, you push it into the mill, crank it and then it separates the thick sauce from the skins and seeds.

You end up with a delicious roasted tomato sauce that is thick and rich.  I have not canned this sauce because I'm not sure how acidic it is.  I'm a paranoid canner and only use recipes for canning that have been tested, so I freeze my tomato sauce in quart size bags.  There's nothing like the taste of roasted, homegrown tomatoes in the middle of winter.

Roasted Tomato Sauce

Ingredients

• 4 pounds tomatoes, stemmed and quartered 
• 1 large onion (or 2-3 small), roughly chopped
• 2 small bell peppers, roughly chopped
• 8 cloves fresh garlic
• 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 1 tablespoon dry oregano (or a handful of fresh oregano & basil)
• salt and pepper to taste

Directions

1. Combine ingredients in a 9x13 inch pan.
2. Roast at  for 1 1/2 to 2 hours, until juices get thick.  Stir every half hour.  Tomatoes will get a bit blackened.
3. Let cool, and run through a food mill to remove skins & seeds.  The resulting puree will be thick, so there is no need to reduce.
4. Season to taste with salt and pepper.