Rich Tomato Sauce

Tomato sauce is a nice basis for lots of dishes.  It is very easy to make your own and it so much better than anything in a jar from the supermarket.  This is great on cauliflower pizza.  Full flavoured ripe, tomatoes give the best result, but canned plum tomatoes are a better choice than under-rip or flavourless fresh ones.

INGREDIENTS

1 onion

2 garlic cloves

50g butter

1kg ripe tomatoes or 2 x 400g cans plum tomatoes with juice

3 tblspn tomato paste

2 oregano sprigs

METHOD

1. Peel and finely chop the onion and garlic.  Melt the butter in a saucepan, add the onion and garlic and cook over a medium-low heat for about 8 minutes.
2. Skin the fresh tomatoes by immersing in a bowl of boiling water for 30 seconds.  Drain, refresh under cold water and peel away the skins.  Quarter the tomatoes, discarding the seeds, then roughly chop the flesh.  If using canned tomatoes, chop them roughly.
3. Add the tomatoes to the onion and garlic mixture, together with the tomato paste and oregano sprigs. Simmer, uncovered, over a low heat for 25-30 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the sauce is thick and pulpy.  Disgard the oregano sprigs and season with salt and pepper to taste.