Nonna's Homemade Italian Sauce (2024)

Vegetarian | Vegan | Gluten Free | Freezable
​​Serves:
6-7 (depending on size of portions)
Total Time:
(30 minutes-2 hours, depending on how long you let the sauce simmer to perfection!)
Notes:
Be mindful of omitting the sugar as it works to reduce the acidity in the sauce.
Consider making multiple batches to use during the week or to freeze for later use.
Ingredients:

• 1 can tomato puree
• 1 can tomato paste
• 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 1 tbsp minced garlic OR 1 tbsp garlic powder
• 1 tbsp onion powder OR 1 small white onion cut into large slices (remove after cooking, prior to serving)
• 1 tbsp basil
• 1 tbsp oregano
• 1 tbsp turmeric
• 1 tsp crushed black pepper
• ¼ cup of sugar (omit at your own risk!)
• Water

Instructions:

1. Pour olive oil in a large saucepan and heat over medium-low heat.
2. Add the minced garlic or the garlic powder. Add either the onion powder or the cut-up onion.
3. Heat for two minutes making sure that the garlic and onion do not burn.
4. Lower the heat to simmer and remove pan from the heat all together to avoid injury from oil splatter.
5. Add the tomato puree, tomato paste and then fill up the empty tomato paste can with water and add to the pan. Stir well, making sure that there are no tomato puree clumps.
6. Add the basil, oregano, turmeric, black pepper and sugar. Stir well.
7. Raise the flame to medium heat and cover. Let cook for 5-8 minutes or until bubbling.
8. Lower the heat again to simmer. Remove pan from heat again to avoid injury from splatter.
9. Stir well making sure that the sauce is not sticking to the bottom.
10. Cover and simmer for at least thirty minutes.
11. Stir every five to ten minutes to ensure that the sauce does not stick to the bottom.
12. The longer you simmer the sauce, the better! Just be sure to stir frequently to ensure that the sauce does not stick to the bottom.
13. Be sure to taste test the sauce and add any garlic, onion, basil, oregano or pepper that you’d like to taste.
14. Enjoy!

Nutritional Information:
Calories Per Serving: 162,Carbs: 30,Fat: 5,Protein: 5,Sodium: 54,Sugar: 20.
​
Notes:
Be mindful of omitting the sugar as it works to reduce the acidity in the sauce.
Consider making multiple batches to use during the week or to freeze for later use.

Once, at a work function, colleagues and I were discussing what we would have for a last meal if we could pick anything at all. When it came time for me to give my response it was: my late grandmother’s spaghetti and meatballs with her homemade sauce. It would actually be ANYTHING that she made. I can honestly say that even the most esteemed chefs would rave about her cooking.

When I was young, every Sunday morning involved two important things:
1. Going to Mass.
2. My Nonna’s sauce.

My mother, grandparents and I lived in a two-family home. My mother and I on second floor and my grandparents on first floor. Each Sunday morning, I would wake up to the wonderful smell of sauce simmering on the stove in my grandparents’ house downstairs. My Nonno (grandpa in Italian) would wake up early and buy fresh Italian bread from the bakery while my Nonna (grandma in Italian) would begin making her sauce for whatever mouth-watering dish we would be eating for lunch.

While Pope Paul VI, after the Second Vatican Council, only required one hour for fasting before receiving the Eucharist, my Nonna was old school and observed the midnight fast. It was torture to smell her sauce and not be able to enjoy some. So, my mother and I would break off pieces of the fresh bread and dip it in the sauce before getting scolded by my Nonna.
​
I now try to continue the tradition. While we attend Mass every Sunday morning, I try to also make sauce each Sunday morning as well. At least now, no one can yell at me for taste testing some before Church! I bet my Nonna is scolding me from heaven 😊

While I feel that my recipe for my Nonna’s homemade sauce is not even close to how amazing her sauce was, I have been told by my mother and her brothers, my Uncles, that it is not far off from the way that her sauce tasted. I have added Turmeric to my recipe. I don’t notice a taste difference and feel that the health benefits outweigh any changes it makes to the sauce. Of course, you can omit, increase or add anything that you’d like. Be mindful of omitting the sugar as it works to reduce the acidity in the sauce. Another tip is to consider making double or triple batches to use throughout the week. You can also freeze the sauce to use later.

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​Buon appetito!​