Marinara #2

Marinara #2

2 (28-ounce) cans whole tomatoes packed in juice
2 T olive oil
1 medium onion, minced (about 1 cup)
2 medium garlic cloves, minced (or 2 t chopped)
1/2 t dried oregano
1/3 C red wine
salt and ground black pepper
1-2 t sugar
3 T chopped fresh basil
1 T extra-virgin olive oil

Pour tomatoes and juice into strainer set over large bowl. Crush tomatoes with hands and remove and discard fibrous cores; let tomatoes drain excess liquid, about 5 minutes. Remove 3/4 cup tomatoes from strainer and set aside. Reserve 2 1/2 cups tomato juice and discard remainder.

Heat olive oil in large skillet over medium heat until shimmering. Add onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened and golden around edges, 6 to 8 minutes. Add garlic and oregano and cook, stirring constantly, until garlic is fragrant, about 30 seconds.

Add tomatoes from strainer and increase heat to medium-high. Cook, stirring every minute, until liquid has evaporated and tomatoes begin to stick to bottom of pan and brown fond forms around pan edges, 10 to 12 minutes. Add wine and cook until thick and syrupy, about 1 minute. Add reserved tomato juice and bring to simmer; reduce heat to medium and cook, stirring occasionally and loosening browned bits, until sauce is thick, 8 to 10 minutes.

Transfer sauce to food processor (or transfer to saucepan and insert immersion blender; see the related article "Do You Really Need a Hand Blender?") and add reserved tomatoes; process until slightly chunky, about eight 2-second pulses. Return sauce to skillet and add basil and extra-virgin olive oil and salt, pepper, and sugar to taste.



**It is, of course, FALL! And in the fall, I always (ok for at least 9 years now) make marinara from my garden tomatoes, which I freeze and we enjoy all year long! I usually make Giada's Marinara, but I still have a bunch in my freezer, and have been dying to try some of these recipes from Cook's Illustrated All Time Best Recipes.  So I adapted this recipe from "America's Test Kitchen," to use my tomatoes.  Which I am convinced made this marinara so yummy!  I wash my tomatoes, make a small X in the skin and drop them in boiling water until the skin starts to split.  I remove them and let them cool.  I peel them and try to remove most the seeds without getting rid of all the liquid.  I put them in my large pyrex measuring bowl and measured about 7 cups before I started crushing the tomatoes, then I followed the recipe exactly.

**Had it tonight for dinner and there wasn't a whole wheat noodle left, yes you read right, whole wheat noodle....the sauce is that good! ;)