This tasty sauce is adapted from Jack Bishop’s Slow-Roasted Tomato Sauce from his cookbook, Vegetables Every Day. I added a few more tomatoes and way more basil, because…BASIL!
This recipe used homegrown Little Mamma Roma tomatoes, which I think are the best tomatoes for sauce making. They grow in clusters and have always produced nicely in Spring and Fall. I’ve learned to cut them back to about three feet tall in the heat of the summer while it’s not setting flowers for a nice Fall flush. Cutting them back also makes shading them easier, which can increase production in the heat.
The basil used is just a regular Sweet Italian basil that I grow in a long planter and also in the garden near the tomatoes and peppers (it’s supposed to improve the flavor of both). It’s thrived in the pot and I hope to be able to nurse it through the winter indoors so that I’ll have a constant supply, because …. BASIL!
PrintSlow-Roasted Tomato Basil Sauce
Basic, simple tomato sauce.
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 3 hours
- Total Time: 3 hours 15 minutes
- Yield: 2+ cups 1x
- Category: Tomato
Ingredients
- 3.5 pounds tomatoes, cored and cut crosswise into 1/2-inch slices
- salt to taste
- freshly ground black pepper
- 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- 1/3 cup chopped basil leaves (or more)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 250 degrees and line two baking pans with parchment paper. Depending on how much juice is in your tomatoes, you may need to use a rimmed pan. The Romas that I use don’t have much juice, though, so a flat pan can also work.
- Spread the tomato slices in a single layer on your baking sheets and sprinkle with salt and pepper to your taste. Throw those babies in the oven and forget about them for 3 hours. Maybe set a timer. They’ll be pretty shriveled when they are done.
- Throw the basil, olive oil, and roasted tomatoes into the blender and zap!, your tomato sauce is done. To make a prettier, redder sauce flecked with beautiful green basil leaves, you can use a food mill on the tomatoes and then add the oil and basil once the tomatoes have been milled. Either method turns out super tasty.
Notes
This sauce is delicious on egg dishes, fish dishes and pairs well with summer squashes. It saves in the refrigerator for several days or in the freezer for a few months.
Mom
This is great even I can do this thanks to the pictures and detailed instructions. It is nice to see the finished product.
Lesley
Hi Mom!! This is what I made with the tomatoes you gave me!