Basic Tomato Sauce

Categories: italian, pasta, sauce

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 medium onion, diced
• 4 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 (28-ounce) can whole or chopped tomatoes, with juices
• pinch (or 1/4 teaspoon if you like it hot) dried red pepper flakes
• 1 tablespoon grated lemon peel (about 1/2 lemon)
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf Italian parsley or shredded fresh basil
• coarse salt
• freshly grated black pepper
• Spaghetti, or other pasta, cooked al dente
• Whole flat-leaf Italian parsley or basil leaves
• Grated Parmesan cheese

Directions

1. In a large saucepan (there is a thought that cooking tomatoes in a cast-iron pan destroys the finish – although I have never found this to be the case and it may even add extra iron to your sauce), heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the onion and cook until soft and light golden brown, about 7 minutes. Add the garlic and cook another minute. Add the tomatoes and their juices and bring to a boil, stirring frequently. Add the red pepper flakes and lemon peel then lower the heat and simmer for about 20 minutes, taking some time to smash the tomato pieces so the sauce is more pulpy than chunky. Stir in the chopped parsley. Check for flavor and season appropriately with salt and pepper.

2. Sauce will keep one week, in a tightly sealed container in the refrigerator.

3. When ready to serve, add the cooked pasta to the saucepan and stir over very low heat for a few moments, so that the pasta absorbs the sauce. Garnish with a few springs of parsley or basil leaves and a small handful of grated Parmesan.

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