Every year when we have an over abundance of tomatoes, Eric wants to make tomato sauce. In the past, I’ve always fought against it. It seems like such an ordinary use of tomatoes and I’m always looking for something more exotic. Last fall, I finally gave in and consented to making tomato sauce with seconds from the Garlic Farm. I should listen to Eric more often.

This sauce blew me away! I had been foregoing sauce on our pizzas because I just didn’t like the taste of the sauces we’ve tried. But I really loved this one! I considered sharing some with the family when we made a batch, but I didn’t because I couldn’t bear to part with even one jar of it. Now that I’m writing this though, I suppose I’ll have to do a bit of sharing. Maybe they can just taste some if we invite them to dinner!

We can the sauce to preserve it for longer periods of time and to avoid taking up freezer space, but if you are not into canning, it can also be frozen in small batches.

Roasted Garlic & Pepper Tomato Sauce (adapted from bhg.com)

Time required: about 5 hours total, but worth every second!   Yield: 6-7 pints

Prep time: 2 hrs 30 mins Grill or roast time: 40 minutes  Cook time: about 1 hour Process time for canning: 35 minutes

Ingredients:

• 6 bulbs garlic
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 4 medium red, yellow, and/or green bell peppers, halved lengthwise and seeded
• 12 pounds ripe tomatoes
• 3 tablespoons packed brown sugar
• 2 tablespoons kosher salt or 4 teaspoons regular salt
• 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
• 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 2 cups lightly packed fresh basil leaves, snipped
• 1 cup lightly packed assorted fresh herbs, such as oregano, thyme, parsley, and/or basil, snipped
• 6-7 tablespoons lemon juice

Directions:

Start with the garlic and the peppers.

We prefer the grill to the oven to roast the peppers & garlic, but either can be used.

Heat the grill to medium high or preheat oven to 400°. Cut off the top 1/2 inch of each garlic bulb to expose the ends of the individual cloves. Leaving the garlic bulbs whole, remove any loose, papery outer layers. Place the bulbs, cut ends up, in some aluminum foil. Drizzle the bulbs with 1 tablespoon of the oil, then wrap the foil tightly around the bulbs. Allow the garlic to roast for about 40 minutes or until it feels soft. Cool the garlic on a wire rack with the foil opened up.

Roasting the garlic brings out the sweetness.

Brush the remaining 2 tablespoons of oil on the peppers. Roast the peppers for about 5-10 minutes on the grill, skin side down, until the skin starts to char. If using the oven, arrange the pepper halves, cut sides down, on a baking sheet covered with aluminum foil. The peppers will take about 30-40 minutes in the oven. When the peppers are done, put them into a brown paper bag, close the top and let them stand for 15 minutes or until they are cooled enough to handle. Peel off the charred skin from the peppers and discard the skins. Chop the peppers and set them aside.

The char on the peppers softens in the brown paper bag for easy peeling.

While the peppers & garlic cool, start the tomatoes. Use a small, sharp knife to cut a shallow “X” on the bottom of each washed tomato. Immerse the tomatoes (in batches) in boiling water. Cook for 1-3 minutes or until the tomato skins split open at the “X” on the bottom. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the tomatoes to a large bowl of ice water. As they cool enough to handle, use a knife or your fingers to peel the skin off the tomatoes, cut them in half horizontally and squeeze the seeds out of them. (This can be done alone, but I usually score & boil the tomatoes then remove them to the ice bath while Eric seeds & peels the tomatoes.)

The 3 step process for peeling the tomatoes.

Remove the garlic cloves from their paper skins by squeezing the bottoms of the bulbs. Place the garlic cloves in a food processor with 2-3 seeded, peeled, chunked tomatoes. Cover and process until a smooth paste forms.

Puree the garlic with a few of the tomatoes.

Transfer the chopped garlic and tomatoes to a 7- to 8-quart stainless-steel, enamel, or nonstick heavy pot. Add the rest of the tomatoes to the pot. Add the brown sugar, salt, vinegar and black pepper to the tomato mixture.

Some seasonings are added to the tomatoes & garlic.

Use a wand blender to homogenize the sauce. Bring it a boil, then boil steadily, uncovered, for about an hour, stirring frequently.

You can also puree the sauce in batches in a blender.

Stir in the chopped peppers. Boil for another 10 to 20 minutes more or until the sauce reaches the desired consistency, stirring occasionally. Remove the sauce from the heat and stir in the basil and other herbs.

The herbs go in when the sauce is done.

Spoon 1 tablespoon of the lemon juice into each of six or seven hot, sterilized pint canning jars. Ladle the hot sauce into the jars with the lemon juice, leaving a 1/2-inch of headspace.

Getting ready to can the sauce.

Wipe the jar rims and screw on the lids with the bands. (If you are going to freeze the sauce instead of canning it, allow the sauce to cool then divide the 6 tablespoons of lemon juice equally among the number of containers you are using and distribute the sauce to the containers, then freeze.) Process the filled canning jars in a boiling-water bath for 35 minutes, starting the timer when the water bath returns to boiling.

Our jars are filled & ready for the water bath.

Remove the jars from the canning pot and cool on a wire rack, tightening the rims as the jars cool. Store for up to 6 months in a cool, dry place.

A good day’s work!

This will sure use up those abundant tomatoes in a hurry!  ~Linda

Roasted Garlic & Pepper Tomato Sauce (adapted from bhg.com)

Time required: about 5 hours total, but worth every second!   Yield: 6-7 pints

Prep time: 2 hrs 30 mins Grill or roast time: 40 minutes  Cook time: about 1 hour Process time for canning: 35 minutes

Ingredients:

• 6 bulbs garlic
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 4 medium red, yellow, and/or green bell peppers, halved lengthwise and seeded
• 12 pounds ripe tomatoes
• 3 tablespoons packed brown sugar
• 2 tablespoons kosher salt or 4 teaspoons regular salt
• 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
• 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 2 cups lightly packed fresh basil leaves, snipped
• 1 cup lightly packed assorted fresh herbs, such as oregano, thyme, parsley, and/or basil, snipped
• 6-7 tablespoons lemon juice

Directions:

Heat the grill to medium high or preheat oven to 400°. Cut off the top 1/2 inch of each garlic bulb to expose the ends of the individual cloves. Leaving the garlic bulbs whole, remove any loose, papery outer layers. Place the bulbs, cut ends up, in some aluminum foil. Drizzle the bulbs with 1 tablespoon of the oil, then wrap the foil tightly around the bulbs. Allow the garlic to roast for about 40 minutes or until it feels soft. Cool the garlic on a wire rack with the foil opened up.

Brush the remaining 2 tablespoons of oil on the peppers. Roast the peppers for about 5-10 minutes on the grill, skin side down, until the skin starts to char. If using the oven, arrange the pepper halves, cut sides down, on a baking sheet covered with aluminum foil. The peppers will take about 30-40 minutes in the oven. When the peppers are done, put them into a brown paper bag, close the top and let them stand for 15 minutes or until they are cooled enough to handle. Peel off the charred skin from the peppers and discard the skins. Chop the peppers and set them aside.

While the peppers & garlic cool, start the tomatoes. Use a small, sharp knife to cut a shallow “X” on the bottom of each washed tomato. Immerse the tomatoes (in batches) in boiling water. Cook for 1-3 minutes or until the tomato skins split open at the “X” on the bottom. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the tomatoes to a large bowl of ice water. As they cool enough to handle, use a knife or your fingers to peel the skin off the tomatoes, cut them in half horizontally and squeeze the seeds out of them. (This can be done alone, but I usually score & boil the tomatoes then remove them to the ice bath while Eric seeds & peels the tomatoes.)

Remove the garlic cloves from their paper skins by squeezing the bottoms of the bulbs. Place the garlic cloves in a food processor with 2-3 seeded, peeled, chunked tomatoes. Cover and process until a smooth paste forms.

Transfer chopped garlic and tomatoes to a 7- to 8-quart stainless-steel, enamel, or nonstick heavy pot. Add the rest of the tomatoes to the pot. Add the brown sugar, salt, vinegar and black pepper to the tomato mixture. Use a wand blender to homogenize the sauce. Bring it a boil, then boil steadily, uncovered, for about an hour, stirring frequently. Stir in the chopped peppers. Boil for another 10 to 20 minutes more or until the sauce reaches the desired consistency, stirring occasionally. Remove the sauce from the heat and stir in the basil and other herbs.

Spoon 1 tablespoon of the lemon juice into each of six hot, sterilized pint canning jars. Ladle the hot sauce into the jars with the lemon juice, leaving a 1/2-inch of headspace. Wipe the jar rims and screw on the lids with the bands. (If you are going to freeze the sauce instead of canning it, allow the sauce to cool then divide the 6 tablespoons of lemon juice equally among the number of containers you are using and distribute the sauce to the containers, then freeze.)

Process the filled canning jars in a boiling-water bath for 35 minutes, starting the timer when the water bath returns to boiling. Remove the jars from the canner and cool on a wire rack, tightening the rims as the jars cool. Store for up to 6 months in a cool, dry place.