Garden Tomato Scratch Made Marinara and Sausages

Got a garden of overly ripe tomatoes? I've got the answer. While scratch made marinara using real tomatoes may sound intimidating, it's not at all!

A simple boil and ice bath makes for peeling the skin off a breeze. Followed by a few pulses in the blender, this recipe is fool proof!

I like to add fragrant flavors like garlic, onions and fresh basil plus a little carrot to sweeten.

My fiancé's favorite counterpart to a homemade sauce is sweet and spicy sausages. We let the sausages and sauce cook ALL DAY in the slow cooker which leaves you with a thick marinara and melt in your mouth bites of sausage.

Perfect in a toasted roll with cheese or over a heaping plate of pasta! Topped with plenty of parmesan of course...

Garden Tomato Scratch Made Marinara

6-8 servings, 4-5 cups sauce | Cook time: 30 minutes | Slow cook: for best results 6-8 hours slow cook

Notes: A true Italian speciality. Sausages cooked low and slow in home GROWN tomato sauce. Truly nothing better.

Ingredients:

• 5 lbs fresh tomatoes

• 1 tbsp olive oil

• 1 tbsp tomato paste

• 4 cloves garlic

• 1/2 large onion (~100g), diced

• 2 tbsp carrots (~30g), diced

• 1 tbsp Italian seasoning

• 1/2 tbsp salt

• 1 tsp pepper

• 1 tsp garlic powder

• 1 tsp onion powder

• 1/2 cup fresh basil

• Optional: 1 lb sweet sausage, 1 lb spicy sausage

Directions:

1. Rinse tomatoes of dirt etc.

2. Remove stems from the top of tomatoes.

3. Use a pairing knife to cut a small x on the bottom of each tomato.

4. Bring a large pot of water to a boil and place a large bowl with ice water next to it.

5. Use a slotted spoon to lower a few tomatoes at a time into the boiling water for a minute or so- you’ll see the skin start to wrinkle and peel back.

6. Remove tomatoes and place in ice bath.

7. Repeat steps 5 and 6 until all tomatoes have been placed in the ice bath.

8. Once cool, peel the skin back off the tomatoes and discard. Place the peeled tomatoes in a blender (may need to work in batches).

9. Dice onions, carrots and garlic roughly. Add to the blender along with Italian seasoning, garlic powder and onion powder.

10. Pulse until desired consistency- more pulses, smoother sauce, less pulses more chunky (I prefer mine still a little chunky).

11. Discard the boiled water and return the pot to medium heat. You could also replace the pot with a dutch oven, instant pot or slow cooker instead. Add olive oil to the pot and heat for a minute.

12. If using sausage, add sausage to sear - not a necessary step but gives great flavor. Sear for about a minute or so each side until it has a nice brown outside but hasn’t cooked all the way through yet.

13. Remove the sausages and set aside. Add the tomato paste to the oil and use a wooden spoon to mix and cook a minute.

14. Pour the blended tomatoes into the pot and bring to a boil. Lower to a simmer and cover.

15. Slice the sausages into 1” chunks and stir into the sauce.

16. Cover and allow the sausages to cook for at least 30 minutes.

Note: For best results I like to make the sauce in the morning and put my slow cooker/instant pot on low slow cook and cook until dinner. You could also use a dutch oven in a low heated oven or over a low flame. I prefer the slow cooker so I don’t have to worry about having my oven on or an open flame. After ~6 hours of slow cooking the sausages will literally melt in your mouth and the sauce should be nice and thick.

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Nutrition Facts are provided as a guideline only. Exact nutrition will depend on quantity, brand and ingredients used.