Making Sauce from Plum Tomatoes

My son made fresh tomato sauce today for the linguini that was served for my sister's family birthday dinner tonight. You can also make this sauce with canned crushed and plum tomatoes. We prefer Tuttorosso brand. (Printable recipe below)

To watch the process, click on the video above. I also found a great video tutorial on making tomato paste in Sicily. What an amazing process!

My son chopped some yellow onions and sautéed it in olive oil. He added a little salt to sweat the onions. Don't cook too high, you don't want them to brown, just soften. (See video above)

When the onions were translucent, he added the garlic. He loves his Pampered Chef garlic slicer, easy, no fuss preparation of garlic. If you would like to be invited to my current Pampered Chef party, click the link above and message me. Great products for yourself or as holiday gifts!

After adding your garlic, add some tomato paste. Allow the garlic to cook and soften, stiring often. You are also frying your tomato paste, which makes the sauce rich and delicious. (See video above)

Pour in the prepared tomatoes and stir. Make sure you stir often. You don't want the sauce to burn. Let the sauce heat a bit then add seasonings. My son likes to add red pepper flakes (not too much), fresh basil (previously frozen) more salt and, if the tomatoes are a bit acidic after cooking for a while, some sugar. Let the sauce simmer, stirring often, for approximately an hour. You want the fresh tomatoes to cook well.

Click the video above to see how to prepare the tomatoes to make sauce. It can be done in one day, if you choose. We did it on separate days. After preparing the tomatoes, we refrigerated them until we were ready to make the sauce today.

Boil the pasta of your choice in salted water, drain and dress pasta. Mix well so it doesn't stick. Fresh sauce will be loose, even with tomato paste. Serve with a bowl of extra sauce as some like to add more. Top with parmesan cheese when plated.

We served the linguini with fresh sauce along with other dishes to celebrate my sister's birthday. My mom made white clam sauce, my sister made a peppers and chickpea dish and my brother-in-law made a pork stew (there are members of the family who eat meat). Why I don't eat meat. It was a real smorgasbord, with a little something for everyone.

Dinner was served outdoors with red wine. There was also soft drinks and water for those who wanted.

After dinner we served dessert with coffee. A strawberry/banana filled chocolate cake with vanilla buttercream for the birthday girl and a variety of jelly-filled cookies (my sister's favorite).

I can't believe my baby sister, the one I used to sit on my lap after her bath, turned 50. How did it happen?

It was a wonderful afternoon and evening. Spending time with family always brings a lot of laughs and crazy antics. I didn't capture my nephew bashing my teenage nephew with the cake. Too bad we missed that, it was perfect. My youngest nephew set himself up for that one. Live and learn.

The family loved my son's fresh sauce from plum tomatoes from the farms out East on Long Island. It was absolutely delicious, not too sweet, not too much heat (spice) and very little acidity.

In our house, we always have a variety of dishes. The beautiful colors, various textures, delectable flavors and array of aromas are genuinely enticing. I always loved to taste a little bit of everything.

I hope you all had a wonderful Sunday. For families of Italian descent, Sunday is family day.