Pasta is a cheap staple food in our household, but we haven’t found a jarred pasta sauce that we enjoy eating. So, this chunky vegetarian tomato sauce is one that we make relatively frequently. When we were newly married, we made the sauce about once a week. It is delicious by itself on top of pasta, and can be improved with the addition of cheese. You may even want to use the leftovers as a pizza sauce! Click here for that recipe. Enjoy!
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Recipe:
Chunky and Easy Homemade Vegetarian Tomato Sauce
Delicious chunky vegetarian tomato sauce
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 yellow onion, finely chopped
- 2 garlic cloves, finely chopped or minced
- 1 celery stalk, finely chopped
- 1 can (14-15.5 ounces) diced tomatoes (I prefer low sodium petite diced)
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- 1/2 peeled carrot, or brown sugar to taste
- 1-2 teaspoons of Italian seasoning (or other dried herbs)
- 1/2 cup water
- salt and pepper, to taste
Directions
- Melt the butter and oil together in a saucepan over low heat.
- Add finely chopped onion, garlic and celery to the melted butter and oil. Allow this mixture to saute over low heat for 5 – 10 minutes (until the celery is softened). Stir occasionally.
- Stir in tomatoes, tomato paste, dried herbs, and water. Add salt and pepper to taste. Also add in peeled carrot or brown sugar.
- Increase the heat to medium and bring to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer, stirring occasionally, for 15-20 minutes. The sauce should be thickened when it is done. Remove carrot prior to serving!
FRUGAL FIXES 