So, I’m pretty sure you are aware by now that I love me some pizza.

And lasagna.  And spaghetti.  And anything parmesan.  And Italian food in general.  And, well, most food for that matter — but that’s neither here nor there.

So, you can imagine we go through our fair share of tomato sauce in our house.  Whether it’s for pizza or lasagna or spaghetti or chicken parmesan or something else, I use homemade tomato sauce.  Trust me: it’s so much better than anything you’ll get in a jar from the store.  I even make extra each time so I will have some stored away in my freezer for just those occasions.

Well, I started to realize I should try my hand at my own recipe for tomato sauce.  True, I do absolutely love Giada De Laurentiis’ recipe for Simple Tomato Sauce, which is why I posted about it here on my blog.  But, as delicious as it is, it is quite simple.  Hence its name.

Enter Roasted Tomato Sauce.  I wanted to make a roasted tomato sauce with roasted garlic, onions and tomatoes that would create a nice depth of flavor not present in Giada’s recipe.

I love these ingredients when roasted because they release a sweetness and a richness you wouldn’t otherwise get.

While I still love Giada’s recipe, I think this one came out pretty darn good too and it will for sure remain in my Sauces file for my various and frequent Italian meals.

Roasted Tomato Sauce

2 lbs. Roma tomatoes, cut in half
5 cloves garlic, smashed
1 medium yellow onion, quartered
1 carrot, unpeeled and chopped into large pieces
2 tsp. kosher salt, plus more to taste
1 tsp. ground black pepper, plus more to taste
2 tbsp. olive oil
3-4 basil leaves
1/4 tsp. dried thyme
2 tbsp. unsalted butter
1/4 tsp. sugar

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Line a baking sheet (with sides at least 1-inch deep) with parchment paper. Lay out the tomato halves (skin-side down), onion, garlic and carrot and sprinkle with salt, pepper and thyme. Try to make this only one layer to allow for maximum roasting. Drizzle olive oil all over.

Bake for 60 – 75 minutes, or until the edges of the tomatoes and onions begin to turn black. Carefully transfer the roasted contents to a food processor or blender (or a large mixing bowl, if using a stick blender), add the basil leaves and pulse until smooth.

Transfer the pureed contents to a large skillet and heat over medium-high heat.  Add thyme, unsalted butter, sugar and more salt or pepper, to taste.

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Related Posts

1. Simple Tomato Sauce
2. Roasted Fennel and Italian Sausage Pizza with Garlic White Sauce
3. Thyme-Roasted Carrots
4. Cream of Fresh Tomato Soup
5. Tomato Bruschetta

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