Simple Fresh Marinara Sauce

I used to top pasta with jarred commercial sauce because it was so easy, but then I started making my own sauce from canned tomatoes because it was almost as easy and tastes so much better and fresher than commercial jarred sauces. Even the “healthy” jarred sauces tend to use a lot of sugar, which I think detracts from the taste of tomatoes.

• 4-5 large garlic cloves (2 tblsp.); more or less, depending on your mood, chopped
• 2-3 tbsp dried basil (fresh if you have it)
• 2-3 tbsp dried oregano
• 1-2 dashes salt
• 2-4 grinds of pepper to taste
• Olive oil (about 4 tbls, or enough to cover the bottom of the pot)
• 2 28 oz cans tomatoes, crushed (or tomato sauce if you prefer a smoother consistency)

1. Swirl olive oil into bottom of pan and cook for 1 minute under medium heat. Add garlic, basil and oregano, and saute until garlic is soft.
2. Lower the heat or turn off completely and add the canned tomatoes. Be careful, because if the oil is too hot, the tomato sauce will splatter.
3. Stir well and adjust the heat back to medium. Add salt, and bring to a light simmer and reduce the heat to low.
4. Cook for 10-20 minutes, and add more seasonings as desired.

Optionally, you can saute onions, peppers or mushrooms with the garlic, and/or add Parmesan cheese to the sauce, but the sauce is really very good by itself. Serve with cooked pasta of your choice.

Serves 4-6.

Tags: Italian, pasta, spaghetti, spaghetti sauce, tomato sauce, tomatoes