Twenty-Minute Tomato Sauce

Okaaaaay. It's really twenty-two minute tomato sauce if you count the time it takes to assemble all the ingredients. But that's still pretty-damn-fast. Italians will probably want to look away, as I'm sure I'm committing a major crime against food and culture. But why take all day about it if you don't have to? Right? Right.

Tomato sauce probably is CaveBoy's favorite food. Well, sauce in general. I make sure to double-sauce my meatloaf and he still adds more sauce when he reheats his portion. He sent me back to the drawing-board the first time I made Sesame Chicken saying, "it tastes great, but needs more sauce." I've even caught him digging in the refrigerator for half-used jars of marinara to put on roasted veggies at the end of the week.

Unfortunately for CaveBoy, we usually don't have jars of marinara hanging around (that was the old Cave). Too often store-bought jars of sauce have sugar, or soybean oil, or preservatives that I prefer to avoid. And the ones that don't have those things cost more than twice as much!

Fortunately, we do have air-tight containers and now this beautiful recipe. Make a batch, divide it into two- or three-cup portions and freeze. You'll have a tangy tomato sauce at your fingertips, and all the convenience of a store-bought jar.

This sauce goes great with everything!

Ingredients

1 28 oz can diced tomatoes in juice

3 15 oz cans tomato sauce

2 cans tomato paste

1/3 cup balsamic vinegar

2 tablespoons dried minced onion

1 1/2 tablespoon dried basil

1 tablespoon dried oregano 

2 teaspoons garlic powder

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes

Instructions

Mix all ingredients in a large stock pot. Bring to boil over medium heat. Reduce heat and simmer for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally. Enjoy. Makes about 8 cups.