Marcella Hazan's Tomato Sauce with Onion and Butter

This is another recipe off of Food52's list of recipes that use 3 ingredients or less. It's an incredibly easy and very delicious tomato sauce.  We served it over garlic and basil linguine noodles, and it made an excellent dinner.

As mentioned in the original link, the portions in the ingredient list can easily be modified based on taste and preference.

My plan is to make batches of the sauce now while the garden is full of tomatoes and freeze them for later.  While the sauce itself is very basic, it can be used as is, or you can add basil, garlic, or other ingredients to make a richer sauce depending on your needs.

The recipe below includes instructions for how to prepare fresh tomatoes.  There are other methods available in the original link.  If you'd like additional tips on blanching and peeling tomatoes (my preferred method) check out this link.

Marcella Hazan's Tomato Sauce with Onion and Butter

Ingredients

2 pounds fresh, ripe tomatoes, prepared as described below, or 2 cups canned imported Italian tomatoes, cut up, with their juice
5 tablespoons butter
1 medium onion, peeled and cut in half
Salt to taste

Directions

Put either the prepared fresh tomatoes (cut into chunks) or the canned in a saucepan, add the butter, onion, and salt, and cook uncovered at a very slow, but steady simmer for about 45 minutes, or until it is thickened to your liking and the fat floats free from the tomato.

Stir from time to time, mashing up any large pieces of tomato with the back of a wooden spoon.

Taste and correct for salt. Before tossing with pasta, you may remove the onion (as Hazan recommended) and save for another use, but many opt to leave it in. Serve with freshly grated parmigiano-reggiano cheese for the table.

Making Fresh Tomatoes Ready for Sauce (The blanching method)

Use fresh, ripe plum tomatoes (or other varieties, if they are equally ripe and truly fruity, not watery)

Wash the tomatoes and using a sharp knife mark the bottom with an X.  This will encourage the tomatoes skins to peel.

Plunge the tomatoes in boiling water for a minute or less.  Immediately drain the tomatoes and put them in an ice filled sink or bowl.  Remove the tomatoes.  The skins should peel off easy.  Remove the cores and use as needed.

Original link:

http://food52.com/recipes/13722-marcella-hazan-s-tomato-sauce-with-onion-and-butter