Recipe

Slow-roasted Garlic-Tomato Sauce

Here's another attempt to use abundant tomatoes in a yummy, easy, creative way.

Slow-roasted Garlic-Tomato Sauce

Ingredients

  • 2 pounds organic cherry tomatoes, or tomatoes of choice
  • 4 bell peppers, a variety of colors
  • 1 medium onion
  • 2 head garlic (about 16 cloves)
  • 1/4 cup olive oil, or oil of choice
  • 3 tablespoons packed light brown sugar, or dark brown sugar
  • 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon black pepper

Method

  1. Line two 9x13-inch rimmed baking sheets with parchment paper; set aside. Preheat oven to 275°F; place oven racks in third and fourth positions.
  2. Rinse and remove stems from tomatoes; place on clean dishtowel then roll tomatoes around to dry; if using larger tomatoes, cut in half or quarters; place tomatoes and any liquid in large bowl.
  3. Rinse bell peppers then remove stem, ribs and seeds (leave in ribs and seeds if you want a spicy hotter sauce); slice peppers in half; rinse again then dry.
  4. Peel onion and slice into 4 chunks and pat dry.
  5. Peel garlic and add to bowl; drizzle on oil and stir to coat all.
  6. In a small bowl or jar with lid, combine light brown sugar, sea salt and black pepper; whisk or shake jar to combine; sprinkle over oiled vegetables and stir to coat evenly.
  7. Place onion sections and bell peppers (skin side down) on prepared baking sheet; spread tomatoes and garlic on second prepared baking sheet; place sheet with tomatoes on the lowest of the two oven baking racks and the sheet with peppers the next rack up.
  8. Bake for 1-1/2 hours at 275°F then increase oven temperature to 325°F and bake for 30 minutes.
  9. Remove sheets from oven to cool for at least 5 minutes; lift parchment paper sheets and pour contents (including liquid) into the bowl of a food process or blender, or place in a large bowl and mash with a potato masher. Process peppers, onion, garlic and tomatoes to desired consistency; serve immediately as a warm sauce, or pour sauce into a glass jar with an airtight lid and refrigerate up to 2 days; serve cold or reheat in a saucepan set over medium heat.

Servings: 4. Prep Time: 15 minutes. Preheat: 275°F (raise to 325°F after 1-1/2 hours). Bake time: 2 hours.

Variation

Add one or more during step 5:

Ingredients

  • 2 medium carrots, peeled and cut into rounds
  • 1 leek, cleaned and cut in half
  • Any other peppers of choice, cleaned and cut in half