Pasta Pomodoro

There is nothing as good as a slow cooked tomato sauce made from fresh tomatoes and herbs. Pasta pomodoro, as it is called in Italy, captures all the great sweet flavors of summer. While the actual cooking time is long, 2 1/2 hours, the preparation is pretty quick and easy. Once you get the sauce going, all you have to do is stir it occasionally, which you can easily do while being busy with other things around the house.

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Ingredients:

  • 2 pound of fresh tomatoes ( I like the dry farmed ones - makes for an even sweeter sauce), cut into chunks
  • 1 large onion, chopped
  • 12 cloves of garlic, chopped
  • 1 bunch of basil, chopped

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  • 1/2 bunch of marjoram, chopped
  • 1/2 bunch of oregano, chopped
  • 1/2 cup of red wine
  • 1 table spoon of olive oil
  • Salt
  • Pepper

Serves 4

You will need a non-reactive heavy pot, such as a Le Creuset, to make this dish.

Preparation:

  • Saute onions and garlic in olive oil for about 5 minutes - medium heat
  • Add tomatoes and red wine, stir, cook for about 5 minutes - medium heat
  • Add herbs, blend in, cook for a couple of minutes on medium heat
  • Cover pot, reduce heat to low - let sauce simmer for about 2.5 hours, stirring and checking on it every 10-15 minutes.

    I served the dish with grilled shrimp and a salad

The liquid will slowly diminish, leaving you with a nice thick sauce. You can keep the lid open just a tiny tad if you feel that the liquid is not reducing quickly enough. If you want to thicken the sauce more, you can add a 1/2 small can of organic tomato paste 30 minutes before the sauce is done.