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Fresh Heirloom Tomato Sauce

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Set aside that jar of store-bought tomato sauce full of added sugar and switch it up with some Fresh Heirloom Tomato Sauce, using the best of what the season has to offer. Use it on top of some meatballs, in layers of lasagne, as a pizza sauce, or as a regular old pasta sauce. Such an amazing flavor and a great way to preserve the season. Get the kids to help and they will be lapping up those tomatoes in no time.

This recipe has been updated from the original September 2015 version in order to provide a better experience for our readers.

One of the things I love most about shopping at the local farmer’s markets is the great bargains that tend to pop up every week.

Fresh Heirloom Tomato Sauce

Last week, my favorite market stand, which tends to be on the pricier side (but everything is so pretty and tasty I keep going back for more), was selling off huge flats of organic heirloom tomatoes for $6. We jumped on the chance to get one, and as we were paying, one of the ladies working there threw in about 10 extra tomatoes and just charged us $5, as they needed to be used up soon.Fresh Heirloom Tomato Sauce

Enter Big Batch Cooking: Heirloom Tomato Sauce Style.

I made enough heirloom tomato sauce to last a few meals, and have a couple batches in the freezer for when pizza night strikes and fresh tomatoes aren’t around.

I like to use these jars because not only can they be used for canning, but they are also pretty when placed on the table, which is nice when entertaining. Plus they are made in Germany.

 
This is the most versatile pizza sauce in my repertoire – we use it on pizza, in lasagne, atop some meatballs, or on some cannelloni (check out this cannelloni recipe). It freezes well, which is a huge bonus and a great way to preserve the season.

Fresh Heirloom Tomato Sauce

 

Why Use Heirloom Tomatoes?

If you have a good farmers market where heirloom tomatoes are available then make sure you try them out.  They have a much sweeter more complex flavor than a regular ol’ tomato.

BUT if regular ol’ vine-ripened tomatoes are all you can get your hands on, then go with them. The sauce will still be amazing, I promise.

Any Other Ideas For Using Heirloom Tomatoes?

If you have some heirlooms left over then be sure to check out these amazing recipes:

If you try out my heirloom tomato sauce I would love to hear all about it sobe sure to leave a comment below.

 

Print Recipe
3.6 from 10 votes

Fresh Heirloom Tomato Sauce

Fresh Heirloom Tomato Sauce is the most versatile tomato sauce around. Use it on top of some meatballs, in layers of lasagne, as a pizza sauce, or as a regular old pasta sauce. So delicious and so easy
Prep Time10 mins
Cook Time35 mins
Total Time45 mins
Course: Sauce
Cuisine: Italian
Servings: 6 serves
Calories: 167kcal
Author: Whole Food Bellies

Ingredients

  • 5 lbs heirloom tomatoes
  • 1/3 cup olive oil
  • 6 cloves of garlic minced
  • 1 1/2 tsp kosher salt
  • 1/2 tsp dried oregano
  • 1/2 tsp dried thyme

Instructions

  • Peel your tomatoes. Mark the bottom of each tomato with an X with a sharp knife. Pop them into a pot of rapidly boiling water, remove with a slotted spoon, and pop into a bowl of iced water. Allow to cool and then peel - discard the skins
  • Chop the tomatoes into chunks, making sure to remove the stems
  • In a medium saucepan, heat the olive oil and garlic, until the garlic is aromatic. Add the tomatoes and salt, and bring to a boil. Once boiling, reduce the heat to a simmer, add in the oregano and thyme, and allow the sauce to simmer until nice and thickened. I usually leave it for about 30 minutes, as I like a thick sauce
  • Once thickened to your liking, season with some pepper, and remove from the heat. Keep stored in a glass jar in the fridge. Also keeps well in the freezer

Nutrition

Calories: 167kcal | Carbohydrates: 15.3g | Protein: 3.4g | Fat: 12g | Saturated Fat: 1.7g | Sodium: 90mg | Fiber: 4.5g | Sugar: 9.6g

 

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Comments

  1. Cassie Ulmer says

    Made and canned this sauce today!! I tripled the recipe. My hubby loves spaghetti with andoli sausage to spice it up a little. So we will be trying this later this week!!! I kept tasting it through the cooking process and it made my house smell delish!

    Reply

    • Donna1 says

      Oh yay, I am so glad you tried it. I literally just bought 30 pounds of tomatoes at the markets today to make some more up, as we just finished our batch from last season. It is so handy to have on hand in the cupboard!!

      Reply

  5. Nikki Frank-Hamilton says

    This is similar to the sauce I make, but pinning to try yours too! We grow heirloom tomatoes in our garden, this year the yield wasn’t great, but I picked up a few more pounds at the farm market. Love having sauce on hand and love heirloom tomatoes, they do make the best sauce! Thanks for the recipe.

    Reply

    • Whole Food Bellies says

      Yeah it’s great to make big batches and have it on hand for the rest of the year. I made so much in my last batch that I had like three huge pots going at once – house smelled amazing…but I didnt want to look at another tomato for a while 🙂

      Reply

  22. Sandra says

    Yum! I love tomatoes and actually have several waiting to be processed! I usually just make tomato sauce (plain, like you buy in a can at the store) to use in soup, but I like this recipe! Definitely making it today! Thanks!

    Reply

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