Kimberly, you will LOVE your homemade sauce. I make it every year. Everyone has their own method but this is what I do. Drop your tomatoes in boiling water for a minute or so then plunge them into ice water. Remove the skin and core. Some people find the seeds bitter, but I don't so I don't mess with de-seeding, but you can if you want to. Then put your tomatoes in a colandar and salt them. Then let the juice run through for a while. Then I put them in a big copper bottomed pot and simmer on low until the desired consistency it reached. This depends on how watery the tomatoes are. I also add italian seasoning along the way. I don't can mine, I freeze it so I can add whatever I like...such as garlic and onions, etc. and not worry about safe canning needs such as correct acid. If you are canning you need to follow specific guidelines for safety reasons. It takes a lot of tomatoes to cook down into good sauce, but it is worth it when you pull out a jar of homemade sauce in the winter and taste the summer season!

Duane

SPAGHETTI SAUCE FROM FRESH TOMATOES

Chop tomatoes coarsley and run through a tomato sauce machine. Or, without a machine, peel and chop tomatoes.

Fill a large (3 to 4 quart) pan with tomato sauce from machine (or diced, peeled fresh tomatoes); maybe 2 pounds+. Simmer over medium-low heat, with cover ajar, for 1 1/2 to 2 hours.

When tomatoes are done, in a separate pan/pot, sauté 1 small brown/yellow onion in good olive oil. Add 6-12 cloves of garlic (chopped), two long stems of fresh oregano, two whole stems with leaves of basil, 1/2 cup red wine, and salt and pepper to taste.

Pour cooked tomatoes into pan with onion mix. Mix well. Cover and let sit on lowest setting for one hour. Stir if you think things might be sticking.

Joe

Here is a link that might be useful: Tomato Sauce Machine

Duane:
I do the same with fresh tomatoes, to get rid of the skins and seeds.

The batch of Meat Sauce I made for my Daughter and friends,came out Great.

They are all good cooks and gave the Sauce a thumbs up.

I used Canned Whole Tomatoes and Diced tomatoes.
But they were Pulsed in the Blender just enough to leave some small pieces.
Added a can of Tomatoe Paste too.

Plus 12 Baked Meatballs chopped small, to the Sauce.

Kimberly:
My daughter has a William Sonoma , Italian Tomato Press,
She put the tomatoe's thru.
I think she got it on Amazon.

It screens the tomatoes and takes out the Seeds, Skins.

I like to Pulse them in the Blender, so there are still small pieces of Tomatoes left.

If you want a Good Recipe for Spaghetti Sauce ( Gravy ),
I put it in for you.
You can freeze the Tomatoes or make a LARGE batch of Sauce
and freeze in Portions,
with the Meat Balls and sausage.
Lou

I don't worry about making the sauce thick. The thin liquid part of the sauce still flavors the pasta. A slice of garlic bread is perfect for soaking it up so it does not get away from you. Parmeasan cheese will thicken it some. My father adds sugar to his but I don't.

I also make it very fresh. Just chopped tomatoes (skin bits don't bother me), italian spices, and whatever I have to add to it... onions, mushrooms, summer squash, jalapenos. I just bring it to a low boil to release the spice flavors and it is ready enough for me. Most of the time no meat as it is faster. If you want meat add cooked and crumbled hamburger or sausage bits. One of my favorite additions is grated mozzerella cheese. It melts into long strings but that blends perfectly with long strings of spagetti... adds some fat to make the spagetti more filling.

When I had a girlfriend and kids living with me this was a favorite meal. Youngest boy pestered his babysitter for spagetti with "sticks" in it. It took awhile to figure out he liked the rosemary.

: )
lyra

Kimberly:
I have to leave for awlile.
So I'll put the recipe in Now.

LouÂs Pizza Sauce and Spaghetti Sauce ( Gravy )

I use canned tomatoes but make sure they are Italian or a red color. Some choices are Contadina , Red Pack , HuntÂs , All Red, = Tutto Rosso, Chento

If you use all fresh Tomatoes ,I add some Tomatoe Paste.

Pizza Sauce

1 Large can of Tomato Puree and Crushed Tomatoes or just Crushed TomatoÂs
I use all Powdered Spices now, and get the same results
1 level teaspoon Garlic Powder ( add more later to taste )
1 tablespn. of Onion powder.
1 teasp. Salt. or to taste
3 teasp. Sugar ( add more if it tastes too acidy ).
An Italian pinch of pwd.cloves.
3/4 teasp. Oregano ( or to taste ) if it is strong.
1 teaspoon of Parsley,
1/2 teasp. Basil.
1/4 teasp. black pepper.
½ teaspoon + of ( Chicken flavored Soup Base )
Simmer for about ½ hour or use without cooking.
Large handful of Parmasan Cheese, when done , after 1/2 hour.
- - - - - - - - - -
Continue for SPAGHETTI SAUCE

This recipe can be used for Spagetti Sauce , just add a can of Tomatoe Paste ,
with water to thin a little ,.if the Sauce too thick to start it will burn easily.
It will thicken as it cooks.

Add to the Pizza Sauce:

½ cup of fine chopped Onion.
And 3 bay leaves .
Don't forget the Chicken flavored Soup Base.
I add uncooked Meatballs, couple at a time or ,
( I bake about 3 dozen meatballs and freeze them )

Sausage and Chicken Thighs, when you start cooking.
(cook at least 1 ½ to 2 hours )Take the chicken out when it is done.
( About 1 ¼ hours )
Add the Parmasan Cheese " after " the sauce is cooked & stir
ALSO !!! season to your own taste. Add more or less of what you like.

Our tomatoes (last year) were too juicy - one batch of sauce was SO thin it took hours to cook down. Next batch I skinned and chopped the tomatoes, then drained them, because I like my sauce a bit thick. We saved the uncooked juice for other uses - you could use it to thin out a too thick sauce to your desired consistency. I used a stick blender directly in the pot to smooth out the chunks - adding fresh basil afterwards so it didn't disappear.

You asked about using homegrown tomatoes? Right? You meant fresh not home grown that you had canned?

When the tomatoes are coming fast and furious I very often made spaghetti sauce out of fresh tomatoes.
I blanch and peel as others have said and cut in half, I don't bother to chop or to remove the seeds.
When my 11 qt pot is full I cook at a fairly good rolling boil....while in big fry pan I sautee a couple of chopped onions and a chopped green pepper on a little bit of EVOO, when it's almost done I add 4 or 5...or more! Chopped cloves of fresh garlic, stir and cook about 1 more minute then dump[ all into the simmering tomatoes. Then I add a handful of fresh chopped parsley and maybe 1/4 cup of packed basil leaves, chopped.
Now comes the hard part....you will need to simmer that pot until it is cooked down by about half the volume. It will take several hours.
Correct the seasonings, add salt as needed and I always like to add some red wine vinegar as the garden tomatoes are so sweet! And I add some ground red pepper, to taste.
If I am sure I won't want to use the sauce for any vegetarian purpose, I brown a couple of skinny lean pork chops with the onions and add them to the pot.

I also often make a quick pomodoro sause....sort of a pomodoro..LOL!
I take that big fry pan and add a little evoo about 1/2 a chopped onion and 1/4 a chopped green pepper...sautee, add a couple of cloves of chopped fresh garlic and maybe 4 big peeled tomatoes. Cut them up and add to the pan. Stir and cook them for about 15 minutes until a lot of the water has boiled off, add some chopped parsley, basil and oregano and dump on top of some cooked pasta....top with more fresh basil and some fresh grated parm reggiano.
Tastes like summer for sure!!
Linda C

Thank you all for your responses. I'm off to make my sauce.

I occasionally roast my tomatoes (cut in half skins up) with whole garlic cloves, drizzled with olive oil and puree them together once softened with basil or oregano - whatever seasoning you like really.

Kimberly:
There are a few Tomatoe Colender Sieve's for sale on Ebay.
They remove the skins and seeds. I gave mine away awhile ago.
Here is one , on Ebay. If you don't want it, I'll bid on it
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Here's a link to one even cheaper.....there are lots and lots on ebay for sale.

Here is a link that might be useful: Vintage colander

Kimberly, I agree with all the experienced sauce makers - sauce made from all fresh ingredients will taste better than anything you've ever had before! The flavor will be bright and full - and you'll be addicted! :)

Lori

Oh I love homemade pasta sauce! Just skin and chop the tomatoes, add fresh basil and oregano, season with olive oil and salt and pepper (I add a bit of sugar too). Delicious!

Linda C:
That's the same one, I Posted.
I don't have to put in the Photo now.

Kimberly:
I'm trying to find one with a Blade or Paddle on the bottom. They were a lot easier.

Maybe someone might have seen one.
Lou

Kimberly, you can't go wrong making a sauce using fresh tomatoes, fresh garlic and fresh herbs.

Another alternative and a good way to use up your fresh tomatoes is in a uncooked pasta sauce. Just chop up ripe tomatoes, season with fresh minced garlic, lots of fresh basil, salt and pepper and a little olive oil. If the tomatoes are really juicy you can drain off some of the juice. Cook your favourite pasta, drain and while still hot toss with the fresh tomato mixture. Another option is to add some Kalamata olives to this sauce.

The secret to this sauce is to use fresh ingredients. Not dried herbs.

Ann

Ann:
That sounds really Good.

They did something like that when in the Army.

I arrived in Korea, that's one of the first meals I had.
It was Great.

They had to use dried Herbs but warmed the Tomatoes a little.
That undried the Herbs a little.

After that I started making the Simmered Sauce, with Meat.
LOU

I find the "Chinese hat" style doesn't work very well for tomatoes with skins and seeds. I use my cone for berries for jam and jelly. I have used it for apple sauce but the apples have to be cooked to a mush.
The link below shows more what works best if you feel you must sieve your tomatoes. I just cook them, seeds and all!
Linda C

I usually use a Foley Food Mill to make my juice, could that be what you are looking for? They come in different sizes. I have been looking for a recipe for spaghetti sauce to use up the tomato juice I have canned. I have an over abundance of canned juice :) Any suggestions? I have also wondered about cooking down the juice in a crockpot like you can do when making apple butter. Do you think that might work?

Sue

Ann, that is the ONLY way I'll eat pasta with a tomato sauce. I do it simply, I just toss hot whole wheat pasta (no white stuff, it's too much like eating paste in first grade!) with diced tomatoes, fresh basil and some parmesan. Sometimes I get a wild streak and add julienned fresh fennel and green onions or shallots or leeks, whatever I have.

For straining tomatoes, I use one of these. It's called a Squeezo, my old one is all stainless steel, the newer ones are more plastic and are called "food mills". Villaware makes a nice one but they are far more expensive than that $2.99 sieve. Mine was the right price, my mother gave it to me because she doesn't use it any more so it was free!

I liked my Foley food mill, but gave it to Doucanoe when I got the Squeezo, I didn't need both. That looks more like a sauce pan, with a crank handle. It has feet so it sits on the side of a bowl, you crank it and the seeds and peels stay in the bowl and the juice and pulp goes through the bottom of the strainer and into your bowl.

I don't have a picture but if you search for "Foley food mill" you'll find a bunch of them.

Annie

Sue :
Try some of your Tomatoes and a can of Tomatoe Paste.
Simmer it awhile.
Do a small batch for a test run.
I put in a Recipe for Spaghetti Sauce in a Thread above.
Or you can use others. Mine is Pre Haggled. lol
Give it a try !!!
Lou

I want to thank everyone again for your help. I couldn't have been more pleased with the spaghetti sauce. I haven't quite mastered the spices but it was still good. I basically dropped tomatoes in boiling water until the skin started coming off, then I removed skin and put in pot, along with diced carrots, celery, bell pepper, onions, and mushrooms. Added spices of basil, italian seasoning, and oregano. Next time I will try fresh herbs.

Wanted to throw another recipe into the pot. . . so to speak. . . :-P. Takes maybe 20 minutes, and no peeling or using a bunch of dishes or anything. If I were making sauce for a special occasion, I might cook it for a few minutes, then blend it up (so that it would make a thin liquid), and strain the seeds out before cooking it the rest of the way. The seeds are a tiny bit bitter (but the sauce is still awesome)

And also to violently/respectfully disagree with the white-pasta slander. Taste and texture is better with white pasta; in my opinion, whole wheat pasta will swallow your beautifully crafted sauce. (I do, however, concede the blood sugar and digestive benefits of whole wheat pasta, and I mix resistant starch into my pasta dough). Those sauce additions sound really interesting, though! I love leeks.

Here is a link that might be useful: Tomato sauce