Naked Tomato Sauce

I was spending some time the other day organizing photos. I have so many places to put photos (shutterfly, files on the laptop, facebook, here) that it’s not always easy to stay on top of them all. I still have some photos from our big trip this summer than need to be uploaded to shutterfly and then I should be organized! While I was cleaning out my bloggie I came across a photo that I was pretty sure I hadn’t done a blog post for. I apologize for that but it was a blessing in disguise. Husband has been out of town on business and I have been home sick. It’s very rare for me to be sick enough where I will go home from work. I just haven’t been in the mood to cook.

When husband is gone it takes longer to get through our leftovers so I find myself cooking less often. This really is a shame since I started sharing my menu calendar (up there in the tabs) and my best intentions haven’t been followed through. I’ve also fallen behind on the daily organizing of the house. Urgh. Oh well, I’ll just keep chugging along. Besides, I found a recipe to share!

My guess is that I made this back in September or October. The tomatoes were fresh from my garden. Since I made this recipe so long ago I’m not sure if I made any changes to fit our family’s tastes so I have left the recipe below untouched. It looks crazy involved, but if I remember correctly it was very easy. Well, easy for those of us who have peeled tomatoes before. Peeling tomatoes sounds like it could be a ton of work if you have never done it before but I find it fun. Yes, my ideas of fun can be a little skewed.

Enjoy!

The recipe below will make a thin coating for the amount of pasta listed. If you prefer a heavier sauce-to-noodle ratio, you’ll want to adjust the recipe accordingly.

Makes 4 portions, on the small side

3 lb. plum tomatoes
¾ tsp. coarse salt
1 large garlic clove, thinly sliced
Pinch of red pepper flakes
Small handful basil leaves, most left whole, a few slivered for garnish
¼ cup olive oil
12 oz. dried spaghetti
1 T. unsalted butter, or maybe two if nobody is looking

Bring a large pot of water to boil. Cut a small X at the bottom of each tomato. Blanch the tomatoes in the boiling water for 10 to 30 seconds, then either rinse under cold water or shock in an ice water bath. Peeling the tomatoes should now be a cinch. Discard the skins. Keep the pot full of hot water — you can use it to cook your spaghetti in a bit.

Cut each of your tomatoes in half lengthwise and scoop out the seeds with your fingertips into a small strainer set over a bowl. Ditch the seeds, reserve the juices.

Add tomatoes and salt to a large saucepan (you’ll be adding the pasta to this later, so err on the big side) and turn the heat to medium-high. There are several ways to break the tomatoes down (with your hands, chopping, an immersion blender that I don’t think Italian Grandmothers would approve of but don’t worry, they’re not in the kitchen with you anyway) but I loved Conant’s suggestion of a potato masher, as it gives you the maximum control over how chunky, smooth you want your sauce.

Once the sauce has begun to boil, turn your heat down to medium-low and gently simmer your tomatoes for 35 to 45 minutes, mashing them more if needed. If they begin to look a little dry, add your strained and reserved tomato juices.

While the tomato sauce cooks, combine garlic, a few whole basil leaves, a pinch of red pepper flakes and ¼ cup olive oil in a small saucepan. Heat them slowly, over the lowest heat so that they take a long time to come to a simmer. Once it does, immediately remove it from the heat and strain the oil into a small dish. You’ll need it shortly.

When the tomato sauce has been simmering for about 25 minutes, bring your tomato-blanching pot of water back to a boil with a healthy helping of salt. Once boiling rapidly, cook your spaghetti until it is al dente, i.e. it could use another minute of cooking time. Reserve a half-cup of pasta cooking water and drain the rest.

Once your sauce is cooked to the consistency you like, stir in the reserved olive oil and adjust seasonings to taste. Add drained spaghetti and half the reserved pasta water to the simmering tomato sauce and cook them together for another minute or two. Add remaining pasta water if needed to loosen the sauce. Stir in the butter, if using, and serve immediately with slivered basil for garnish. We found that sauce this good, this simple and rich, needs no grated cheese.

http://smittenkitchen.com/2011/08/naked-tomato-sauce/