Sunday Sauce

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Sunday Sauce is truly a staple in our households! This recipe is the base for so many other Italian dishes like lasagna and eggplant parmigiana. We grew up having versions of this sauce made by Nanna and our moms at least once a week. Today, it is Mia’s one year old son, Enzo’s favourite way to eat pasta, and is shared with our families at most gatherings.  

Nanna could make sauce with her eyes closed. No matter how many times we watched her make sauce, it will never taste as good as when she made it for us. She always told us that her secret ingredient was love.

It is simple, fresh and easy to throw together especially on a slow Sunday afternoon. The secret to a good Italian tomato sauce is time. Simmering this sauce over a couple of hours really brings out all of the flavours – and your kitchen will smell amazing!

                                                          

Wise words from Nanna:

Tomatoes-  We like to use canned tomatoes imported from Italy. We love San Marzano tomatoes. They don’t necessarily need to be whole, you can use crushed or diced tomatoes too. Sometimes Nanna would add in a couple of fresh tomotoes as well. 

Onion and Garlic- Sometimes the onion and garlic have a green sprout in the centre. Nanna always removed this because it has a bitter taste.

Customize- This sauce is simple but can be customized by adding other ingredients. One of our favourite additions is the rind of a parmesan cheese chunk (remove this before pureeing). We save these in our freezer to add to sauces and soups. In the past we have tried adding a carrot, red pepper or a bouillon cube. 

Freezing: You can double this recipe and freeze half for a quick weeknight meal

Ingredients

1  large can (786 ml) whole peeled tomatoes 

½  small white onion, diced 

3 tbsp olive oil

1 large garlic clove- finely minced

1 dried bay leaf 

3-4 stems of fresh Italian parsley leaves

¼ tsp sugar

4-5 leaves of basil

Salt to taste 

Chili flakes

Instructions

  1. Pour your tomatoes into a large bowl. Save the can for later! Crush the tomatoes using your hands until broken up into small pieces. 
  2. Heat olive oil in a pot or deep pan until warmed.
  3. Add onion and saute until transparent and beginning to brown.
  4. While cooking add ¼ tsp of salt, you can add more later to taste.
  5. Add garlic and a sprinkle of chili flakes (more if you like spice), cook for 2 minutes or until fragrant.
  6. Pour in the crushed tomatoes.
  7. Fill the leftover can with water about ¾ full, collecting the remaining tomato sauce and pour into the pot. 
  8. Once the sauce comes to a boil add bay leaf and parsley. 
  9. Reduce heat to low, partially cover and simmer for 1.5 hours stirring occasionally. The sauce will thicken.
  10. Add in basil and sugar and continue to simmer for about 30 more minutes
  11. Using an immersion blender, puree the sauce to your desired consistency. We like it smooth. (Remove bay leaf before blending)
  12. Add seasoning to taste.
  13. Serve over your favourite cooked pasta.

Buon appetito! 

With love,

M & A xo

4 thoughts on “Sunday Sauce”

  1. BARBARA P LEWIS

    Congrats on this website to cherish your Nanna’s legacy – and thanks for sharing this awesome and yummy recipe. I will give it a shot this weekend for sure. We have just bought a lot of pasta and looking for quick and easy ways to enjoy it. This sauce sounds so deeeelish. I’ll be sure to add the secret ingredient 🙂 .

    Warm regards,
    Barb

    1. ciao

      Hi Barbara!

      Thank you for your kind words. We really hope you enjoyed Nanna’s sauce! She would be so happy to share her sauce with everyone.

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