A Classic Tomato Sauce to Impress Any Guest

If there was a queen of pasta sauces, it would be Marcella Hazan’s Tomato Sauce with Onion and Butter.

This pasta sauce is so rich that it tastes like red silk carefully draped over pasta.   The best part of the recipe is it is so simple–put tomatoes in a pot, add butter and onion, wait 45 minutes and voila!

Maybe you’ve never heard of Marcella Hazan—the genius cookbook writer making the authentic Italian food capable for the U.S.  If you haven’t checked out her cookbook, The Essentials of Italian Cooking, it comes highly recommended.   I gave it to my husband as a gift a few years back, and it has since been our go-to book for entertaining.  It is filled with almost 500 recipes that will make your taste buds feel like you just arrived in Italy.  This cookbook is the masterpiece of authentic Italian cooking, on par with Julia Child’s Mastering the Art of French Cooking (for French food).

Back to the tomato sauce…

There are still plenty of tomatoes in my area, so pick up some fresh tomatoes at the area farmer’s market or other places where local produce is available to make this masterpiece of a sauce. If you are using fresh tomatoes to make a sauce, you can take the skin off more easily by putting your tomatoes in the freezer.  This makes the water in the tomatoes expand and makes the de-skinning process easier, but is not recommended for any other tomato application.  The recipe also doesn’t call for any pureeing, but if you have picky eaters who despise chunks—go ahead and use that food processor!  If fresh tomatoes are not in the cards, this recipe also works with canned whole tomatoes.  I suggest those imported from Italy, no salt, with their juice.

Marcella Hazan’s Tomato Sauce with Onion and Butter

Adapted from The Essentials of Italian Cooking by Marcella Hazan
Serves 6.

2 pounds fresh, ripe tomatoes or 1 28 oz can of Italian imported tomatoes, whole
5 tablespoons butter
1 medium onion, peeled and cut in half
2 cloves garlic (optional)
Salt to taste
1 to 1 1/2 pound pasta
Freshly grated parmigiano-reggiano cheese for the table

Put fresh prepared tomatoes (or canned) tomatoes into a saucepan.  Add butter, onion, garlic cloves, salt, and cook with cover on at a simmer for 45 minutes or “until the fat floats free from the tomato” while stirring occasionally. Add salt as needed.  Discard the onion and garlic before tossing with pasta in the pan. Serve with spaghetti, penne, or rigatoni with parmigiano-reggiono.

Want to impress your significant other with a delicious, authentic Italian meal?  This sauce is sure to impress and it’s an simple recipe.  Your guests will ask where you got the pasta sauce!