Basic Tomato Sauce

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            FOOD FUNNY
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Thanks to Amy Dobek for this one:

To help a friend lose weight, I told her that she should switch to
lower-fat foods, including skim milk. When she said her family
would drink only whole milk, I suggested that she keep their
regular container and refill it with skim milk. This worked for quite
a while, until her daughter asked one morning whether the milk
was okay. "Sure, it's fine," my friend answered, fearing she had
been found out. "Why do you ask?"

The daughter explained, "Well, according to the expiration date,
this milk expired two years ago!"

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            TODAY'S RECIPE
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Many American cooks are under the impression that, in order to
make a proper tomato sauce, you need to have a pot simmering
on the back burner for hours, or even days. Nothing could be
farther from the truth. This simple sauce can be put together in
less time than it takes for the pasta water to boil. Use fresh
tomatoes only if they are the best quality tomatoes available
during the summer tomato season. Otherwise, you're better off
sticking to the canned product. Feel free to "doctor" it with your
own combination of herbs and call it your own personal recipe.

Basic Tomato Sauce

1/4 cup (60 ml) olive oil
1/2 onion, finely chopped
2-4 cloves garlic, finely chopped
2 lbs (900 g) ripe tomatoes, peeled if desired, seeded,
and chopped
or 2 cans (15 oz, 425 g each) tomatoes with their liquid
4-6 sprigs fresh basil
4-6 sprigs fresh parsley
Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

Heat the oil in a pot over moderate heat and saute the onion and
garlic until tender but not brown, about 5 minutes. Crush the
tomatoes in your hand before adding them to the pot along with
their liquid. Add the remaining ingredients and bring to a boil.
Reduce the heat and simmer uncovered for 10 minutes. Remove
and discard the herbs before serving. Makes about 2 cups (500 ml).
Received on Wed Apr 12 10:14:41 2006