Roasted Tomato Butter Sauce for Pasta

I recently spent a Saturday morning at a local farm picking tomatoes as part of my CSA membership.  When my bucket was full with over 10 pounds of perfectly ripe tomatoes, I imagined a big bowl of spaghetti tossed with a summery-sweet sauce.  One of my annual summertime rituals is transforming fresh local tomatoes into this luscious sauce, based on a famous recipe in one of my favorite cookbooks, Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking by Marcella Hazan.

Gorgeous, ripe tomatoes – roasted first to concentrate the flavor – are the base of this sauce. To make it silky-smooth, I puree the tomatoes using a food mill, and then simmer with onion and as much butter as my conscience allows.  

You might be skeptical that such a simple sauce, essentially tomatoes and butter, could compete with a robust marinara with olive oil, garlic, oregano & basil.  Without those embellishments, the focus is squarely on the sunny sweet flavor of the tomato, which means this sauce really shines with local, farm-fresh tomatoes. 

The key to this silky sauce is a food mill (see note at bottom of post), which purees the tomatoes while removing the skin and seeds.  If you don’t own a food mill, you can make the sauce with fresh tomatoes using the blanching method, described here at www.food52.com. Or you can start with a can of whole peeled tomatoes, described here at smittenkitchen.com.

Tossed with your favorite pasta, sprinkled with freshly grated Parmigiano, this recipe puts jarred pasta sauce to shame. During the summer, fresh basil makes a delightful garnish.  I usually get the urge to roast some fat Italian sausages as this sauce simmers on the stove.

Roasted Tomato Butter Sauce

(printer-friendly recipe)

This recipe is adapted from Marcella Hazan’s Tomato Sauce with Onion and Butter.  My version features roasted tomatoes for a hint of caramelized tomato flavor and uses a lighter hand with the butter.  I’ve also doubled the original recipe because I love to keep a batch in the freezer for quick pasta dinners. This recipe should make enough sauce for 2 pounds of pasta, unless you like your pasta particularly saucy. Plum tomatoes are meaty and yield a thick sauce; however, any variety of tomato will work. Adjust the simmering time to achieve your desired thickness.

• 4 pounds fresh tomatoes
• 4 tablespoons (½ stick) unsalted butter
• ½ teaspoon salt, plus more to taste
• 1 medium onion, cut in half from top to bottom
• pinch sugar, optional

Preheat oven to 425º F. Cut tomatoes in half lengthwise. Arrange tomatoes, cut-side up, on a large foil-lined roasting pan or rimmed baking sheet. Bake for about 40 to 50 minutes, until tomatoes are tender and somewhat shrunken; the skins may be charred in spots.

Rest the food mill (fitted with the disc with the smallest holes) over a large bowl. Transfer half the roasted tomatoes to the food mill. Turn the crank clockwise to puree the tomatoes. Occasionally turn the crank counter-clockwise to clear any clogged holes. Continue turning for several minutes until all that remains in the food mill are skin and seeds. Discard the skin and seeds. Repeat with the remaining half of roasted tomatoes.

Transfer the pureed tomatoes to a pot and set over medium-low heat. Add the butter, onion, and salt to the pot. Bring to a slow simmer. Continue to simmer slowly, stirring occasionally, for approximately 30 to 45 minutes, or until sauce reaches desired thickness. Remove and discard onion (or refrigerate and save for another use.) Taste the sauce for salt, add more to taste.  Add a pinch of sugar if desired.

This recipe makes enough sauce for 2 pounds of pasta.  Use half the sauce immediately for 1 pound of pasta; freeze the remaining sauce for another meal.   

Makes approximately 3 cups sauce, or 16 servings (1 serving is about 3 tablespoons).

Nutrition facts per serving (sauce only, without pasta): 48 calories, 1 gram protein, 3 grams fat, 8 mg cholesterol, 115 mg sodium, 1 gram dietary fiber.

What’s a Food Mill?

A food mill is a low-tech kitchen gadget that grinds fruits and vegetables while removing skin and seeds. A hand crank turns a sloping blade, which pushes the food through the holes of a perforated disc, resulting in a smooth puree. Food mills come with three interchangeable discs (with small, medium or large holes) so you can vary the thickness of the puree. Food mills are especially useful for making smooth tomato sauce, applesauce, and lump-free mashed potatoes.