Summer and Sauce

My favorite things about this recipe:

The satisfied feeling that summer is drawing to a close and we’re heading into another glorious Minnesota fall. It means we’ve moved past the lovely, hot-weather standards of fresh tomato, mozzarella and basil salads, and that it’s cool enough outside that I look forward to using the stove and the oven and filling the house with both warmth and the deep, rich smells of slow-cooked sauce.

The fragrance of garden-ripe tomatoes blanched in boiling water.

Standing across the butcher block from Gabi, both of us skinning and seeding tomatoes, and instead of talking we each focus on the ripe, fragrant fruits in our hands and softly sing along to love songs playing on the stereo.

The buzz of a dozen bees plundering the garlic chives while I harvest basil, oregano and Italian parsley from the herb bed.

The way it evolves, over the better part of a day, from a light, fresh-smelling mixture into a sauce that is dense, rich and glistening, the flavor intensifying until it feels like a soul-warming indulgence. Then, with the final addition of the basil puree, the feeling of summer comes back full force: light, bright and fresh.

My most favorite thing: the look of satisfied bliss on the faces of my guests and my lovely Gabi when they tuck into a plate of pasta graced with this fabulous sauce.

My recipe is based on “Nach Waxman’s Simple Fresh Tomato Sauce,” from the New York Cookbook by Molly O’Neill, © 1992. My mom gave me the cookbook in 1994, and it’s still one of my favorites.

The Last Summer Fling Tomato Sauce

Red Sauce

5 pounds Brandywine or other beefsteak-type tomatoes, as ripe as possible
1 ½ pounds fresh, ripe plum tomatoes
¾ cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 cup grated carrot
2 large onions, coarsely chopped
3 cloves garlic, coarsely chopped
¼ cup plus 2 tablespoons tomato paste
2 teaspoons dry red wine
½ teaspoon brown sugar
Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Salt, to taste

Herb Bundle

1 sprig fresh oregano
2-3 stems fresh basil
2 sprigs fresh Italian parsley
2-3 celery leaf sprigs
1 dried red chili

Basil Puree

2 cups loosely packed fresh basil leaves
¼ cup olive oil
¼ cup water
⅓ cup pine nuts
¼ tsp. kosher salt

1. Make the Red sauce. Bring a large pot of water to boil and dip the tomatoes for a few seconds. Remove the tomatoes and place in a colander to cool slightly. Peel and discard their skins and remove the seeds, saving as much juice as possible. Coarsely chop the tomatoes and add to the juice.

2. In a large Dutch oven, warm ¼ cup of the olive oil over medium heat. Add the carrots, onion and garlic and sauté until the onions are translucent, 5 minutes. Add the tomatoes with their juice and the tomato paste and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low, partially cover the pot, and simmer for 2 hours, stirring every 15 minutes. At each stirring, drizzle in 1 tablespoon olive oil.

3. Preheat the oven to 350 Degrees F.

4. Make the herb bundle: Place the ingredients for the herb bundle toward the center of a large piece of cheesecloth (approx 18”x24”). Roll short-ways, securely but not too tightly. Twist the ends of the tube and bring them together to tie in the center, securing the herbs and pepper inside the cloth.

5. After the sauce has cooked for 2 hours, stir in the brown sugar, red wine and pepper. Add the herb bundle in the center of the pot, making sure it is covered with sauce. Transfer the pot to the oven. Cover and cook until the sauce is dense and thick, 1 to 1 ½ hours.

6. Make the basil puree: Bring some water to a boil (you can use the left-over tomato water, if you’d like). Place basil in a colander and rinse with boiling water. Drain well. In a blender, combine all basil puree ingredients. Purée at medium speed until smooth. Set aside.

7. Once the sauce has finished cooking in the oven, remove the herb bundle to a small bowl and let cool. Check the sauce for salt and add as needed. When the herb bundle is cool enough to handle, squeeze out any excess liquid back into the sauce. Throw herb bundle away.

8. Serve sauce with whole grain pasta or polenta. Top each serving with some of the basil purée and freshly grated parmesan cheese.