[Cooking] Amazingly easy tomato sauce

[karohemd]

I had a bunch of small vine tomatoes that weren't quite ripe enough for using in a salad but already on the edge of their usability so I cut them in half, drizzled a baking tray with olive oil, put on the tomatoes cut side down, added a handful of crushed garlic gloves (skin on), drizzled over more olive oil and seasoning (salt, pepper, thyme, rosemary) and put it in the oven to roast for about half an hour until squishy.
Then I squeezed the now wonderfully sweet and fragrant garlic gloves out of their skins into a bowl, added the rest of the baking tray and blitzed everything up with my stick blender. Out came this wonderfully fragrant, bright orange and tasty sauce that had just the right consistency. I tasted it and could just have sat there with a spoon eating it all.

I used this as a base for a veg dish but it will just as easily work as a stir-in sauce for pasta.

Comments

[cabd.livejournal.com]

Even better if you roast the garlic first and for a little longer.

[djonma.livejournal.com]

I like adding some balsamic vinegar before roasting.

Also, a sweet red pepper or two (the long ones not bell peppers) add a very different flavour, and you can then use that base for roasted red pepper and lentil soup.

[karohemd.livejournal.com]

I had run out of balsamico (and no time/inclination to go the shops), the horror!

Well, I only had those ingredients but yes, roasted peppers are lovely, too.

[miss-zucca.livejournal.com]

italian-passport-holder cooking hat is on

I believed that what you have done is what Nigella calls "sunblushed" (rather than sundried) tomatoes, and I can swear on what is dearest to myself that the best herbs to accompany tomatoes are fresh basil directly from the plant and origano. Rosemary and thyme is really a big no-no for pasta, these herbs need a stronger flavour (red meat) to balance them out.
So next time you could try to roast everything as your did bar the herbs, tear and shallow fry the basil in olive oil for a few minutes and add it on top of the blended sauce or just bunk it in to be blended raw (fresh basil in the oven I'm not a fan of, I don't quite remember why)

italian hat is off

Apologises for sounding like a right food fascist, don't hate me please... I was born like this :)

[karohemd.livejournal.com]

I would agree but this was a "use up what's lying around before it goes off and without buying anything else" dinner so no fresh basil.
Basil doesn't like being cooked for long, it just goes manky.

I actually didn't use the sauce for pasta (I added some chard and courgettes and served it with pork steaks), just thought it would work nicely. Tastes/personal preferences are different, too, so I can put on my pasta what I like! ;oP

[technotom.livejournal.com]

"Amazingly easy tomato sauce"..

I must say I just thought you were going to say "STAMP ON SOME TOMATOES."

[karohemd.livejournal.com]

Not quite my style. ;o)

[bateleur.livejournal.com]

Sounds delicious! I ought to do more roasting - I'm usually too impatient and end up frying things.

[karohemd.livejournal.com]

So do I but it doesn't always work. You need heat from all sides for this to work properly.
Also, while roasting, you can do other things, frying pans need a lot more supervision.

[undyingking.livejournal.com]

Excellent, this is just my sort of cooking. Simple ingredients, terrific flavour effect.

[karohemd.livejournal.com]

Exactly. Quite often, especially when I'm in a hurry and just want to eat, my dishes look like a dog's eaten it once already but the flavours are usually fantastic. :o)