Home made Italian tomato sauce (Salsa di pomodoro)

In my exciting preserving frenzy that was last weekend, I made (as previously stated) tomato sauce and I used this recipe!!

Salsa di pomodoro with herbs and garlic

I got this recipe out of my much loved copy of 'The Thrifty Kitchen' by Suzanne Gibbs & Kate Gibbs - the daughter and granddaughter of the great Margaret Fulton. I totally love this book and cook from it all the time.

This recipe makes 1 Litre.

To make it you will need:

2 large cloves of garlic
1/3 cup olive oil
1kg ripe tomatoes, chopped or 2 x 400g cans of chopped tomatoes
2 sprigs of garlic
2 sprigs of flat-leaf parsley
sea salt and freshly ground pepper
1/2 tablespoon of chopped oregano

The steps:
1. Press down on the garlic with the flat side of the knife to bruise, then slip of the skins. Heat the oil in a saucepan over medium heat and fry the garlic until it starts to turn golden. Remove the garlic cloves and discard, retaining the oil.

2. Add the tomato, basil and parsley to the oil with some salt and pepper to taste. Reduce the heat to low and cook, partially covered, for 30-40 minutes, until the sauce is thick and pulpy.

3. Remove the pan from the heat and push the sauce through a coarse sieve, discarding any solids. Reheat sauce gently or preserve in hot jars sterilised jars.

I used vacola preserving jars, washed and rinsed then sterilised in the oven. I poured the hot tomato sauce into the jars, put seals, lids and clips on and left them to cool. By allowing the tomato sauce and glass jars to cool, a vacuum is created and the sauce can be stored in the cupboard. My $12 box of tomatoes made 8 bottles of tomato sauce that I will use instead of buying pasta sauce!

Emily xoxo